Covalently Functionalized Graphene with Molecularly Imprinted Polymers for Selective Adsorption and Electrochemical Detection of Chloramphenicol

In this report, we have presented a novel route to attachmolecularlyimprinted polymers (MIPs) on the surface of reduced graphene oxide(rGO) through covalent bonding. First, the surface of rGO was modifiedwith maleic anhydride (MA) via a Diels-Alderreaction using a deep eutectic solvent (DES). Next, 3-propyl-1-vinylimidazoliummolecular units were anchored and polymerized in the presence of ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) using chloramphenicol (CAP) as the template.Primarily, we investigated the effect of the molar ratio of individualprecursors on the adsorption capacity of synthesized materials andaccordingly fabricated the electrochemical sensor for CAP detection.Electrochemical results evidenced that the covalent bonding of MIPunits enhanced the sensitivity of the respective sensor toward CAPin water as well as in real honey samples with high selectivity, stability,and reproducibility. This synthesis strategy involves the covalentbinding of MIP on rGO materials via click chemistyunder sonication power excluding harmful solvents and energy-intensiveprocesses and thus could be a motivation for developing future electrochemicalsensors through similar "green" routes.