Hydrothermal synthesis of Fe₂O₃/graphene nanocomposite for selective determination of ascorbic acid in the presence of uric acid

In this study, we had demonstrated a hydrothermal method to prepare Fe₂O₃/graphene (RG) nanocomposite for the determination of ascorbic acid (AA) in the presence of uric acid (UA). The synthesized materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction measurements (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). As a sensor, the Fe₂O₃/RG nanocomposite modified electrode exhibited synergistic effects which not only improved the electrochemical catalytic oxidation of AA, but also resolved the overlapping anodic peaks of AA and UA. And the results showed that Fe₂O₃/RG could be used for the determination of AA in the presence of low concentration of UA. Using the modified electrode with different concentrations of AA, the linear response range for the determination of AA in the presence UA was 0.57-3.97 mM (R = 0.9994). The detection limit (S/N = 3) was found to be 0.543 μM for the determination of AA. The results suggested that the Fe₂O₃/RG nanocomposite had the advantages of simplicity, high sensitivity and good selectivity for determination of AA.