Development of rutin-rGO/TiO₂ nanocomposite for electrochemical detection and photocatalytic removal of 2,4-DCP

We report in this the development of nanocomposite rutin-reduced graphene oxide/titanium oxide (R-rGO/TiO₂) through a chemical precipitation method to enhance the electrochemical detection and photocatalytic efficiency of the 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP). The structural and morphological characterization of the as-fabricated nanocomposites were carried out by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, etc. The R-rGO/TiO₂ electrochemical sensor was developed for 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP) and rutin oxidation based on composite altered glassy carbon electrode (GCE). Moreover, R-rGO/TiO₂/GCE composite exhibited accomplished electrocatalytic activity towards DCP in the linear range 5–150 μM and a low detection limit of 0.02 μM (S/N = 3). The TiO₂ nanomaterial was well embellished on the surface of the graphene sheets, which helps in electron transfer from TiO₂ to graphene and hence interruption by recombination method, to the foremost R-rGO/TiO₂/GCE enhance the photocatalytic activity. The electrochemically sensed pesticide intermediate 2,4-DCP was the photo-catalytically degraded by the same R-rGO/TiO₂ nanocomposite for water remediation. The nanocomposite exhibits higher degradation efficiency on 2,4-DCP when compared with the individual materials. After the degradation, the degraded water was studied for the animal survival study using Artemia salina as the model eco-toxicology model. Graphic Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].