Fabrication of polydopamine decorated carbon cloth as support material to anchor CeO 2 nanoparticles for electrochemical detection of ethanol

A flexible CeO 2 nanostructured polydopamine-modified carbon cloth (CeO 2 /PDA/CC) interface was fabricated via electrodeposition for ethanol detection. The fabrication method involved two consecutive electrochemical steps in which dopamine was firstly electrodeposited on carbon fibers, followed by the electrochemical growth of CeO 2 nanoparticles. The CeO 2 /PDA-based electroactive interface exerts an impressive electrochemical performance on the flexible sensor due to strong synergistic effect of the PDA functionalization with more active sites. Moreover, catalytic activity of CeO 2 nanostructures anchored on highly conductive CC incorporate superior electrocatalytic performance of the fabricated interface. The designed electrochemical sensor showed a wide response to ethanol in the linear range 1 to 25 mM with a detection limit of 0.22 mM. The CeO 2 /PDA/CC flexible sensor showed good anti-interference ability and excellent repeatability and reproducibility (RSD = 1.67%). The fabricated interface performed well in saliva samples with satisfactory recoveries, corroborating the viability of CeO 2 /PDA/CC integrated interface for practical implementation. Graphical Abstract