Chemically functionalized glassy carbon spheres: a new covalent bulk modified composite electrode for the simultaneous determination of lead and cadmium

A new type of covalent bulk modified glassy carbon composite electrode has been fabricated and utilized in the simultaneous determination of lead and cadmium ions in aqueous medium. The covalent bulk modification was achieved by the chemical reduction of 2-hydroxybenzoic acid diazonium tetrafluroborate in the presence of hypophosphorous acid as a chemical reducing agent. The covalent attachment of the modifier molecule was examined by studying Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and the surface morphology was examined by scanning electron microscopy images. The electrochemistry of modified glassy carbon spheres was studied by its cyclic voltammetry to decipher the complexing ability of the modifier molecules towards Pb²⁺ and Cd²⁺ ions. The developed sensor showed a linear response in the concentration range 1–10 μM with a detection limit of 0.18 and 0.20 μM for lead and cadmium, respectively. The applicability of the proposed sensor has been checked by measuring the lead and cadmium levels quantitatively from sewage water and battery effluent samples.