Development of an Amperometric Sensor Highly Selective For Dopamine and Analogous Compounds Determination Using Bis(2,2′‐Bipyridil) Copper(II) Chloride Complex

The use of Cu(bipy)₂]Cl₂?6H₂O as a biomimetic catalyst in the construction of an amperometric sensor for dopamine determination is reported. The sensor was prepared modifying a glassy carbon electrode with a Nafion membrane doped with Cu(bipy)₂]Cl₂?6H₂O complex. The sensor presented a higher response in 0.25 mol L^?1 phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.0), with an applied potential of ?50 mV (vs. SCE). In the optimized operational conditions, a linear response range between 35 and 240 μmol L^?1, with a sensitivity of 2.02±0.07 nA l μmoL^?1 cm^?2 and detection limit of 8.0 μmol L^?1 were typically observed for the sensor. The response time presented for this sensor was 0.5 s, presenting the same response for at least 40 successive measurements, with good repeatability (3.0%) expressed as relative standard deviation for n=6. The difference of the response between four sensor preparations was 4%. A detailed investigation about the sensor response for other sixteen phenolic compounds and interfering species were carried out. The sensor was applied in the determination of dopamine in pharmaceutical preparation with success.