Design and synthesis of nickel-doped cobalt molybdate microrods: An effective electrocatalyst for the determination of antibiotic drug ronidazole.

Ronidazole (RDZ) is a veterinary antibiotic drug that has been used in animal husbandry as feed. However, improper disposal and illegal use of pharmaceuticals have severely polluted water resources. Doping/substitution of metal ions is an effective strategy to change the material's crystal phase, morphology, and electrocatalytic activity. In this work, nickel (Ni)-doped cobalt molybdate microrods (NCMO MRs) were prepared for the electrochemical detection of RDZ. The catalyst was prepared by reflux method followed by calcination at 500 °C. The prepared catalyst was confirmed by various spectroscopic and microscopic analyses. XRD and Raman spectroscopy demonstrated that the phase transition from β-CoMoO to α-CoMoO was achieved by Ni doping. The SEM analysis showed that cobalt molybdate (CMO) microrods were self-assembled during Ni doping and formed an urchin-like structure, and the average diameter of the MRs was ±50 nm. The electrocatalytic activity of the catalysts was analyzed using the CV technique. The NCMO MRs/GCE exhibited the higher current response than the pristine CMO. The electron transfer coefficient (α = 0.56) and heterogeneous rate constant (ks = 0.32 s) of NCMO MRs/GCE were evaluated by kinetic studies. In addition, the diffusion coefficient of RDZ was determined to be 2.32 × 10 cm/s. Moreover, NCMO MRs/GCE exhibits a low detection limit for RDZ (15 nM) as well as a higher sensitivity (1.57 μA μM cm). The fabricated RDZ sensor was successfully applied to analysis of lake and tap water samples. Based on the results, we believe that the as-prepared NCMO MRs/GCE is a viable electrode material for RDZ sensors in environmental monitoring.