Molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor based on ZIF-67-derived N-doped carbon composite interconnected by MWCNTs for RhB detection

Rhodamine B (RhB) is a synthetic organic xanthene dye that is harmful to human health. RhB can easily be illegally added to food as a colorant due to its cheap and abundant. This work presents a molecularly imprinted (MIP) electrochemical sensor for the determination of RhB by modifying ZIF-67-derived N-doped carbon composite interconnected by MWCNTs (NC@MWCNT) and MIP on the surface of glassy carbon electrode. The sensor exhibited excellent performance for RhB detection due to the outstanding conductivity of NC@MWCNT and the specific adsorption of MIP. Under optimized conditions, the sensor had a wide linear response range (0.001–1000 nM) and a low detection limit of 1 pM. The sensor exhibits remarkable selectivity and can distinguish RhB molecules from dye molecules with similar structures and common metal ions. This work introduces a simple, economical, sensitive, and selective electrochemical detection method for RhB trace detection.