Application of a trazodone-selective electrode to pharmaceutical quality control and urine analyses

A trazodone-selective electrode for application in pharmaceutical quality control and urine analysis was developed. The electrode is based on incorporation of a trazodone-tetraphenylborate ion exchanger in a poly(vinyl chloride) membrane. The electrode showed a fast, stable and Nernstian response over a wide trazodone concentration range (5 × 10⁻⁵−1 × 10⁻² M) with a mean slope of 59.3 ± 0.9 mV/dec of concentration, a mean detection limit of 1.8 × 10⁻⁵± 2.2 × 10⁻⁶ M, a wide working pH range (5–7.5) and a fast response time (less than 20 s). The electrode also showed good accuracy, repeatability, reproducibility and selectivity with respect to some inorganic and organic compounds, including the main trazodone metabolite. The electrode provided good analytical results in the determination of trazodone in pharmaceuticals and spiked urine samples; no extraction steps were necessary. Dissolution testing of trazodone tablets, in different conditions of pH and particle size, based on a direct potentiometric determination with the new selective electrode is presented as well.     

Cetyldimethylethylammonium-Selective PVC Electrode Basedon its Ion-Associate with Phosphotungstic Acid

 A PVC membrane electrode selective for cetyldimethylethylammonium (CDEA) ion was prepared. The active element is a plasticized poly vinyl chloride membrane containing a dissolved ion associate complex of CDEA with phosphotungstic acid (PTA). The electrode showed a near-Nernstian response within the CDEA⁺ concentration range 2.34 × 10⁻⁶ to 1.96 × 10⁻⁴ M at 25 ± 1^{^}C, good selectivity, and is usable within the pH range 3.5–9.0. The isothermal temperature coefficient of the electrode amounted to −0.00012 V/°C. The electrode has been used for the direct determination of cetyldimethylethylammonium bromide either by the standard addition method or by potentiometric titration against PTA. Received January 1, 1998. Revision June 13, 2000.     

PVC-based Cu (II)-Schiff base complex membrane coated graphite electrode for the determination of the triiodide ion

A triiodide-selective electrode based on copper (II)-Schiff base complex as a membrane carrier is proposed. The electrode was prepared by incorporating the carrier into a plasticized polyvinylchloride (PVC) membrane and was directly coated on the surface of a graphite electrode. The obtained electrode showed a near Nernstian slope of 57.0 ± 0.4 mV/decade to I ₃ ⁻ ions over an activity range of 1.0 × 10⁻⁵−1.0 × 10⁻¹ M with a limit of detection of 4.8 × 10⁻⁶ M. The response time of the electrode was fast (5 s) and the electrode could be used for about 2 months without considerable divergence in response. The potentiometric selectivity coefficients were evaluated and displayed anti-Hofmeister behavior. The electrode was used as an indicator electrode in the potentiometric titration of the triiodide ion and in the determination of ascorbic acid in vitamin C tablets. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Determination of thiocyanate ions at nanolevel in real samples using coated graphite electrode based on synthesised macrocyclic Zn(II) complex

The electrode characteristics and selectivities of PVC-based thiocyanate selective polymeric membrane electrode (PME) incorporating the newly synthesized zinc complex of 6,7:14,15-Bzo₂-10,11-(4-methylbenzene)-[15]-6,8,12,14-tetraene-9,12-N₂-1,5-O₂ (I ₁ ) and zinc complex of 6,7:14,15-Bzo₂-10,11-(4-methylbenzene)-[15]-6,14-diene-9,12-dimethylacrylate-9,12-N₂-1,5-O₂ (I ₂ ) are reported here. The best response was observed with the membrane having a composition of I₂:PVC:o-NPOE:HTAB in the ratio of 6:33:59:2 (w/w; milligram). This electrode exhibited Nernstian slope for thiocyanate ions over working concentration range of 4.4 × 10⁻⁷ to 1.0 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ with detection limit of 2.2 × 10⁻⁷ mol L⁻¹. The performance of this electrode was compared with coated graphite electrode (CGE), which showed better response characteristics w.r.t Nernstian slope 59.0 ± 0.2 mV decade⁻¹ activity, wide concentration range of 8.9 × 10⁻⁸ to 1.0 × 10⁻² mol L⁻¹ and detection limit of 6.7 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹. The response time for CGE and PME was found to be 8 and 10 s, respectively. The proposed electrode (CGE) was successfully applied to direct determination of thiocyanate in biological and environmental samples and also as indicator electrode in potentiometric titration of SCN⁻ ion.     

Solid-contact Cu(II) ion-selective electrode based on 1,2-di-(<Emphasis Type="Italic">o</Emphasis>-salicylaldiminophenylthio)ethane

The development of Cu(II) solid-contact ion-selective electrodes, based on 1,2-di-(o-salicylaldiminophenylthio)ethane as a neutral carrier, is presented. For the electrodes construction, unmodified carbon ink (type 1 electrode) and polymer membrane-modified carbon ink (type 2 electrode) were used as solid support and transducer layer. Also, carbon ink composite polymer membrane electrode (type 3 electrode) was prepared. The analytical performance of the electrodes was evaluated with potentiometry, while bulk and interfacial electrode features were provided with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. It is shown that modification of carbon ink with polymer membrane cocktail decreases the bulk contact resistance of the transducer layer and polymer membrane, thus enhancing the analytical performance of the electrode in terms of sensitivity, linear range, and stability of potential. The optimized electrodes of types 2 and 3 exhibit a wide linear range with detection limits of 1.8 × 10⁻⁶ and 1.6 × 10⁻⁶ M, respectively. They are suitable for determination of Cu²⁺ in analytical measurements by direct potentiometry and in potentiometric titrations, within pH between 2.3 and 6.5. The electrodes are selective for Cu²⁺ over a large number of tested transition and heavy metal ions.     

A solid-contact Pb2+-selective polymeric membrane electrode with Nafion-doped poly(pyrrole) as ion-to-electron transducer

Conducting polymer poly(pyrrole) (PPy) doped with Nafion was successfully used as ion-to-electron transducer in the construction of a solid-contact Pb²⁺-selective polymeric membrane electrode. The Nafion dopant can effectively increase the capacitance of the conducting polymer and improve the mechanical robustness of the coating. The transducer layer, PPy-Nafion, characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, exhibits a sufficiently high bulk (redox) capacitance and fast ion and electron transport process. The new Pb²⁺-selective polymeric membrane electrode, based on PPy-Nafion film as solid contact, shows stable Nernstian characteristics in Pb(NO₃)₂ solution within the concentration range of 1.0 × 10⁻⁷–1.0 × 10⁻³ M, and the detection limit is 4.3 × 10⁻⁸ M. The potential stability of the electrode and the influence of the interfacial water layer were also evaluated by chronopotentiometry and potentiometric water layer test, respectively. The results show that the solid-contact Pb²⁺-selective electrode, based on PPy-Nafion film as ion-to-electron transducer, can effectively overcome the potential drift and reduce the water layer between the PPy-Nafion transducer layer and the ion-selective membrane.     

Construction and Analytical Applications of Plastic Membrane Electrodes for Oxytetracycline Hydrochloride

 Oxytetracycline hydrochloride-selective electrodes of both the coated wire and the conventional polymer membrane types based on oxytetracyclinium phosphotungstate and phosphomolybdate have been prepared. A Nernstian response is shown by these electrodes within 1.0×10⁻⁶–1.0×10⁻² M concentration ranges depending on the type of electrode. The response is unaffected by the change of pH over the range 4–11. The standard electrode potentials, E°, were determined at different temperatures and used to calculate the isothermal temperature coefficients of the electrodes. The electrodes show good selectivity to oxytetracycline hydrochloride with respect to many inorganic cations, sugars and amino-acids. Oxytetracycline hydrochloride is determined successfully in pure solutions and in pharmaceutical preparations using calibration by standard addition and potentiometric titration. A regeneration process for the exhausted electrodes has been developed. Received February 2, 2000. Revision April 7, 2000.     

Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence (ECL) Determination of Ephedrine with a Self-Assembly Multilayer Ni(II)-Polyluminol Modified Electrode

By combining the layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly technique with the electrochemical polymerization method, multilayer Ni(II)-polyluminol films were modified on the surface of a vaseline-impregnated graphite electrode. It was found that, compared with an electrode modified by direct electrochemical polymerization, this modified electrode offered a suitable ECL reaction micro-environment created by the special multilayer films, which was beneficial to the ephedrine hydrochloride enhancing effect for luminol ECL intensity. The ECL enhancing effect of ephedrine hydrochloride on the electro-oxidation luminol was improved on this modified electrode. Based on this finding, a new sensitive ECL method was developed for ephedrine hydrochloride determination under the optimal conditions. At the same time, a new idea is proposed for improving the analytical performance of the luminol ECL system by modifying the ECL reaction micro-environment with the layer-by-layer self- assembly method. Under the optimum experimental conditions, the ephedrine hydrochloride concentration in the range of 2.0 × 10⁻⁸–7.0 × 10⁻⁶ mol L⁻¹ was proportional to the enhanced ECL signal, and it offered an 8.0 × 10⁻⁹ mol L⁻¹ detection limit for ephedrine hydrochloride.     

Simultaneous and sensitive determination of procaine and its metabolite for pharmaceutical quality control and pharmacokinetic research by using a graphite paste electrode

A simple, rapid, sensitive, and accurate method for simultaneous electrochemical determination of procaine and its metabolite (p-aminobenzoic acid, PABA) for pharmaceutical quality control and pharmacokinetic research was developed using a graphite paste electrode. The differential pulse voltammetric results revealed that procaine and p-aminobenzoic acid, respectively, showed well-defined anodic oxidation peaks on a carbon paste electrode with a current peak separation of 155 mV at a scan rate of 100 mV s⁻¹. This well separation of the current peaks for these two compounds in voltammetry enables us to simultaneously determine them. Good linearity (r > 0.998) between oxidation peak current and concentration was obtained in the range of 5.0 × 10⁻⁷–5.0 × 10⁻⁵ M for procaine and 5.0 × 10⁻⁷–2.0 × 10⁻⁵ M for PABA in pH 4.50 acetate buffer solution. The detection limit for both analytes is 5 × 10⁻⁸ M (S/N = 3:1). The present voltammetric method has been successfully used to determine trace p-aminobenzoic acid in procaine hydrochloride injection and procaine in plasma with a linear relationship of current to its concentration ranging from 1.0 × 10⁻⁶ to 5.0 × 10⁻⁵ M (correlation coefficient of 0.9981) with a low detection limit of 5.0 × 10⁻⁷ M (S/N = 3:1). This validated method is promising to the study of pharmacokinetics in Sprague–Dawley rat and rabbit plasma after an intravenous administration of procaine hydrochloride injection.     

Preconcentration and Voltammetric Study of Nicergoline at a Carbon Paste Electrode

 The electrochemical oxidation of nicergoline is investigated using cyclic and differential pulse voltammetry at a carbon paste electrode. For the determination of nicergoline an adsorptive stripping procedure is proposed. The response is characterized with respect to pH, ionic strength, preconcentration time, accumulation potential, nicergoline concentration, reproducibility and other variables. By differential pulse voltammetry at a carbon paste electrode and pH 8.0, a linear calibration in the range 5×10⁻⁸ M to 1×10⁻⁷ M and a detection limit of 1×10⁻⁸ M are obtained. The preconcentration medium-exchange approach was used for a selective determination of nicergoline in urine. For dilute urine samples a detection limit of 5×10⁻⁸ M is obtained after 3 min of accumulation and medium-exchange. The procedure also is applied for the determination of nicergoline in dosage form. Received August 24, 1998. Revision April 8, 1999.     

Screen-printed sensor for batch and flow injection potentiometric chromium(VI) monitoring

A disposable screen-printed electrode was designed and evaluated for direct detection of chromium(VI) in batch and flow analysis. The carbon screen-printed electrode was modified with a graphite–epoxy composite. The optimal graphite–epoxy matrix contains 37.5% graphite powder, 12.5% diphenylcarbohydrazide, a selective compound for chromium(VI), and 50% epoxy resin. The principal analytical parameters of the potentiometric response in batch and flow analysis were optimized and calculated. The screen-printed sensor exhibits a response time of 20 ± 1 s. In flow analysis, the analytical frequency of sampling is 70 injections per hour using 0.1 M NaNO₃ solution at pH 3 as the carrier, a flow rate of 2.5 mL·min⁻¹, and an injection sample volume of 0.50 mL. The sensor shows potentiometric responses that are very selective for chromium(VI) ions and optimal detection limits in both static mode (2.1 × 10⁻⁷ M) and online analysis (9.4 × 10⁻⁷ M). The disposable potentiometric sensor was employed to determine toxicity levels of chromium(VI) in mineral, tap, and river waters by flow-injection potentiometry and batch potentiometry. Chromium(VI) determination was also carried out with successful results in leachates from municipal solid waste landfills.     

A New Differential Pulse Voltammetric Method for the Determination of Nitrate at a Copper Plated Glassy Carbon Electrode

 A differential pulse voltammetric method for the determination of nitrate has been described, which is applicable to the analysis of natural water samples with nitrate levels greater than 2.8 × 10⁻⁶ M. A reduction peak for the nitrate ions at a freshly copper plated glassy carbon electrode was observed at about −0.50 V vs Ag ∣AgCl∣KCl_satd electrode in a solution of 2.0 × 10⁻² M Cu²⁺, 0.5 M H₂SO₄ and 1.0 × 10⁻³ M KCl and exploited for analytical purposes. The working linear range was established by regression analysis and found to extend from 2.8 ×10⁻⁶ M to 8.0 × 10⁻⁵ M. The proposed method was applied for the determination of nitrate in natural waters. The detection limit of the method was 2.8 × 10⁻⁶ M and the sensitivity was 0.9683 A·L/mol. The possible interferences by some ions such as phosphate, nitrite and some halides were determined and found to lead to shifts of the peak position and increasing the peak heights. Received March 15, 1999. Revision July 9, 1999.     

Differential-Pulse Polarographic Determination of Some N-Substituted Phenothiazine Derivatives in Dosage Forms and Urine Through Treatment with Nitrous Acid

 A highly sensitive differential-pulse (DPP) polarographic method is described for the determination of three N-substituted phenothiazine derivatives, chlorpromazine (CZ), promazine (PZ) and promethazine (PMZ). The method involves the use of nitrous acid as an oxidant. Polarographically-active sulphoxides with diffusion-current constants (Id) of 2.53, 3.05 and 3.37 were obtained for CZ, PZ and PMZ, respectively. The polarographic waves were characterized as being diffusion-controlled, irreversible and partly affected by adsorption phenomena. All parameters affecting the oxidation process and polarographic behaviour were optimized and incorporated into the procedure. The limiting current-concentration plots in the DPP mode were rectilinear over the range: 0.006–0.1 mM, 0.005–0.08 mM and 0.008–0.1 mM for CZ, PZ and PMZ, respectively, with minimum detectability (S/N=3) of 3 × 10⁻⁷ M for CZ and PZ, and 4 × 10⁻⁷ M for PMZ, respectively. The kinetic parameters of the electrode reaction, including rate constant, free energy of activation ΔG and effect of temperature on both parameters were studied. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of phenothiazines in dosage forms; the results obtained were in agreement with those given with the official methods. The method was further applied to the determination of promazine in spiked human urine. The percentage recovery was 96.86 ± 0.30. The advantages of the proposed method over other reported methods were discussed. A proposal of the electrode reaction was made. Received June 1, 1999. Revision March 10, 2000.     

Perchlorate selective membrane electrodes based on a platinum complex

Three platinum(II) complexes were synthesized and studied to characterize their ability as an anion carrier in a PVC membrane electrode. The polymeric membrane electrodes (PME) and also coated glassy carbon electrodes (CGCE) prepared with one of these complexes showed excellent response characteristics to perchlorate ions. The electrodes exhibited Nernstian responses to ClO₄ ⁻ ions over a wide concentration range from 1.5 × 10⁻⁶ to 2.7 × 10⁻¹ M for PME and 5.0 × 10⁻⁷ to 1.9 × 10⁻¹ M for CGCE with low detection limits (9.0 × 10⁻⁷ M for PME and 4.0 × 10⁻⁷ M for CGCE). The electrodes possess fast response time, satisfactory reproducibility, appropriate lifetime and, most importantly, good selectivity toward ClO₄ ⁻ relative to a variety of other common anions. The potentiometric response of the electrodes is independent of the pH of the test solution in the pH range 2.0–9.0. The proposed sensors were used in potentiometric determination of perchlorate ions in mineral water and urine samples. Correspondence: Ahmad Soleymanpour, Department of Chemistry, Damghan Basic Science University, Damghan, Iran.     

A PVC plasticized membrane sensor for nickel ions

A new PVC membrane sensor, which is highly selective towards Ni (II) ions, has been developed using a thiophene-derivative Schiff base as the ionophore. The best performance was exhibited by the membrane having the composition percentage ratio of 5:3:61:31 (ionophore:NaTPB:DBP:PVC) (w/w), where NaTPB is the anion excluder, sodium tetraphenylborate and DBP is the plasticizing agent (dibutyl phthalate). The membrane exhibited a good Nernstian response for nickel ions over the concentration range of 1.0 × 10⁻¹–5.0 × 10⁻⁶ M (limit of detection is 1.8 × 10⁻⁶ M) with a slope of 29.5 ± 1.0 mV per decade of activity. It has a fast response time of <20 s and can be used for a period of 4 months with good reproducibility. The sensor is suitable for use in aqueous solutions of a wide pH range of 3.2–7.9. The sensor shows high selectivity to nickel ions over a large number of mono-, bi- and trivalent cations. It has been successfully used as an indicator electrode in the potentiometric titration of nickel ions against EDTA and also for direct determination of nickel content in real samples – wastewater samples from electroplating industries and Indian chocolates.     

Azide-selective sensor based on tripodal iron complex for direct azide determination in aqueous samples

A potentiometric azide-selective sensor based on the use of iron(III) hydrotris(3,5-dimethylpyrazolyl)borate acetylacetonate chloride [Tp^Me2Fe(acac)Cl] as a neutral carrier for an azide-selective electrode is reported. Effect of various plasticizers, viz. o-nitrophenyloctyl ether (o-NPOE), dioctylphthalate (DOP), dibutylphthalate (DBP), and benzylacetate (BA), and an anion excluder, hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HTAB), with [Tp^Me2Fe(acac)Cl] complex in poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) were studied. The best performance was obtained with a membrane composition of [Tp^Me2Fe(acac)Cl]/HTAB/DOP/PVC in a ratio of 5:2:190:100 (w/w). The sensor exhibits significantly enhanced selectivity toward azide ions over the concentration range 6.3 × 10⁻⁷ to 1.0 × 10⁻² M with a lower detection limit of 3.8 × 10^–7 M and a Nernstian slope of 59.4 ± 1.1 mV decade⁻¹. Influences of the membrane composition, pH and possible interfering anions were investigated on the response properties of the electrode. Fast and stable response, good reproducibility, long-term stability and applicability over a wide pH range (3.5–9.0) are demonstrated. The sensor has a response time of 14 s and can be used for at least 45 days without any considerable divergence in the potential response. The proposed electrode shows fairly good discrimination of azide from several inorganic and organic anions. It was successfully applied to the direct determination of azide in orange juice, tea extracts and human urine samples.     

Electrochemical oxidation of salicylic acid at well-aligned multiwalled carbon nanotube electrode and its detection

In this paper, an electrochemical sensor for sensitive and convenient determination of salicylic acid (SA) was constructed using well-aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes as electrode material. Compared to the glassy carbon electrode, the electro-oxidation of SA significantly enhanced at the multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) electrode. The MWCNT electrode shows a sensitivity of 59.25 μA mM⁻¹, a low detection limit of 0.8 × 10⁻⁶ M and a good response linear range with SA concentration from 2.0 × 10⁻⁶ to 3.0 × 10⁻³ M. In addition, acetylsalicylic acid was determined indirectly after hydrolysis to SA and acetic acid, which simplified the detection process. The mechanism of electrochemical oxidation of SA at the MWCNT electrode is also discussed.     

Determination of Selenium in Biological Materials Using an Ion-Selective Electrode

A method was developed for determining selenium with a self-made ion-selective electrode was developed. This electrode was made by using Ag₂Se as electroactive material. Optimal working conditions and interferences were investigated. The electrode exhibits good potentiometric response for Se²⁻ ions over the concentration range from 6 × 10⁻⁷ mol · L⁻¹ to 1 × 10⁻⁴ mol · L⁻¹ with a Nernstian slope of 28 ± 1 mV per decade and a detection limit of about 4.5 × 10⁻⁷ mol · L⁻¹. It was used over six months and exhibits good selectivity and sensitivity towards Se²⁻. The method was applied to determine selenium in biological materials. The recovery ranges between 92% and 105.5%, and the relative standard derivation is less than 3.6% (n = 6).     

A new lidocaine-selective membrane electrode based on its sulfathiazole ion-pair

A novel lidocaine ion-selective electrode is prepared, characterized and used in pharmaceutical analysis. The electrode incorporates PVC-membrane with lidocaine-sulfathiazole ion pair complex. The influences of membrane composition, temperature, pH of the test solution, and foreign ions on the electrode performance were investigated. The electrode showed a Nernstian response over a lidocaine concentration range from 1.0 ×10⁻⁵ to 1.0 × 10⁻¹ mol L⁻¹ with a slope of 60.1 ± 0.2 mV per decade at 25°C and was found to be very selective, precise, and usable within the pH range 5–9.5. The standard electrode potentials, E ^o, were determined at 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40°C, and used to calculate the isothermal temperature coefficient (dE ^o/dT=−0.0003 V °C⁻¹) of the electrode. However, the electrode performance is significantly decreased at temperatures higher than 45°C. The electrode was successfully used for potentiometric determination of lidocaine hydrochloride in pharmaceutical products. The article is published in the original.     

Electroanalytical performance of a terbium(III)-selective sensor based on a neutral ionophore in environmental and medicinal samples

A new highly selective terbium(III) electrode was prepared with a polymeric film doped using S-2-benzothiazolyl-2-amino-α-(methoxyimino)-4-thiazolethiol acetate as an electroactive material, benzyl acetate (BA) as a plasticizer, and potassium tetrakis(4-chlorophenyl) borate (KTpClPB) as an anionic site in the percentage ratio 3.17:1.58:63.4:31.7 (ionophore-KTpClPB-BA-PVC, w/w). The electrode exhibited a linear response with a near Nernstian slope of 19.5 mV/decade within the concentration range 1.5 × 10⁻⁷−1.0 × 10⁻² M terbium ions, with a working pH range from 2.0 to 8.0, and a fast response time of 10 s and presented satisfactory reproducibility. The limit of detection was 9.3 × 10⁻⁸ M. The results show that this electrode can be used in ethanol media up to 30% (v/v) concentration without interference. It can be used for 3 months without any considerable divergence in the potentials. Selectivity coefficients for terbium(III) with respect to many cations were investigated. The electrode is highly selective for terbium(III) ions over a large number of monovalent, bivalent, and trivalent cations. This shows the valuable property of the proposed electrode. The stability constant of the ionophore towards Tb³⁺ ions was determined with the sandwich membrane method. It was successfully used as an indicator electrode in potentiometric determination of terbium(III) ions with EDTA and in direct determination in tap water and binary mixtures with quantitative results. The utility of the proposed electrode was also determined in the presence of ionic and nonionic surfactants and in the presence of fluoride ions in four pharmaceutical (mouthwash) preparations. Figure Structure of S-2-Benzothiazolyl-2-amino-α-(methoxyimino)-4-thiazolethiol acetate