Electrochemical investigation of platinum-coated gold nanoporous film and its application for Escherichia coli rapid measurement

Pt-nanoparticle-coated gold nanoporous film (PGNF) was synthesized via a simple nonpolluting approach and PGNF modified electrode was also constructed successfully for the rapid measurement of Escherichia coli (E. coli) in this work. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) images showed that the resulting PGNF electrode had highly ordered arrangement and large surface area. Furthermore, the electrochemical characteristics of the PGNF electrode were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and amperometric i-t curve. The PGNF electrode showed excellent electrocatalytic activity to E. coli and the current responses were in good linear from 2 x 10(1) cfu/ml to 1 x 10(6) cfu/ml with the detection limit of 10 cfu/ml (S/N= 3) without pretreatment. The high sensitivity, wider linear range and good reproducibility make this PGNF a promising candidate for portable amperometric E. coli sensor. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.