Electrochemical determination of Hg²⁺ in sakura shrimp and drinking water using f-CNF/TeO₂ composite

Mercuric ions (Hg²⁺) is a hazardous material and which affects the human health. Herein, we have developed a highly sensitive and selective electrochemical sensor for the determination of mercuric ions (Hg²⁺) in sakura shrimp and drinking water samples. Tellurium oxide (TeO₂) prepared through ultrasonication has been combined with functionalized carbon nanofibers (f-CNF) which was prepared by following a simple sonication method. TeO₂ has outstanding properties like high electrical conductivity and good chemical stability. Here, f-CNF/TeO₂ composite was studied by using numerous characterizations such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopic techniques. Besides, the electrochemical behavior of f-CNF/TeO₂ composite modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) was inspected by using electrochemical methods like cyclic voltammetry (CV) and different pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques. f-CNF/TeO₂/GCE showed a good electrochemical activity towards the detection of Hg²⁺. f-CNF/TeO₂/GCE showed a detection limit of 7.60 nM and acceptable sensitivity of 13.52 μA μM⁻¹ cm⁻² and 2.875 μA μM⁻¹ cm⁻² towards Hg²⁺. Also, viable stability, selectivity, and reproducibility were found in f-CNF/TeO₂/GCE. The good performance of f-CNF/TeO₂/GCE towards Hg²⁺ was seen in sakura shrimp and drinking water samples.