Highly sensitive and selective detection of Bis-phenol A based on hydroxyapatite decorated reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites

Highlights: •Simple chemical reduction method was used for preparation of reduced graphene oxide/hydroxyapatite (rGO/HAp) nanocomposites. •The rGO/HAp nanocomposites exhibited good biocompatibility with hMSCs. •Selective chemical sensor based on rGO/HAp nanocomposites was developed for detection of Bis-phenol A. •The fabricated rGO/HAp/Nafion/GCE sensor exhibited good detection limit of 60 pmol L⁻¹. -- Abstract: A facile and cost effective chemical reduction method is employed for the preparation of reduced graphene oxide/hydroxyapatite (rGO/HAp) nanocomposites. The transmission electron microscopy images revealed that the HAp flakes are well decorated on the surface of rGO. The morphological structure of the as-synthesized rGO/HAp nanocomposites was confirmed through X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy, while the composition and thermal stability were analyzed by energy dispersive spectra and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. Furthermore, the effect of rGO/HAp nanocomposites for the proliferation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell (hMSC) was performed to confirm the biocompatibility. A selective chemical sensor based on rGO/HAp modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) for sensitive detection of Bis-phenol A (BPA) has been developed. Several important parameters controlling the performance of the BPA chemi-sensor were investigated and optimized at room conditions. The rGO/HAp/Nafion/GCE sensor offers a fast response and highly sensitive BPA detection. Under the optimal conditions, a linear range from 0.2 nmol L⁻¹ to 2.0 mmol L⁻¹ for the detection of BPA was observed with the detection limit of 60.0 pmol L⁻¹ (signal-to-noise ratio, at an SNR of 3) and sensitivity of 18.98 × 10⁴ μA.L/μmol.m². Meanwhile, the fabricated chemi-sensor showed an excellent, specific and selective recognition to target BPA molecules among coexistence of other analytes in the buffer system. This novel effort initiated a well-organized way of efficient rGO/HAp/Nafion/GCE sensor development and practically analyzed the real hazardous environmental pollutants at room conditions.