Electrochemical detection of arsenic(III) using indium-implanted boron-doped diamond electrodes

Indium-modified, boron-doped diamond electrodes fabricated by an ion implantation method have been developed for electrochemical detection of arsenite (As(III)). Ir⁺ ions were implanted with an energy of 800 keV and a dose of 10¹⁵ ion cm^-2. An annealing treatment at 850 °C for 45 min in H₂ plasma (80 Torr) was required to rearrange metastable diamond produced by an implantation process. Characterization was investigated by SEM, AFM, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Cyclic voltammetry and flow injection analysis with amperometric detection were used to study the electrochemical reaction. The electrodes exhibited high catalytic activity toward As(III) oxidation with the detection limit (S/N = 3), sensitivity, and linearity of 20 nM (1.5 ppb), 93 nA μM ^-1 cm^-2, and 0.999, respectively. The precision for 10 replicate determinations of 50 μM As(III) was 4.56% relative standard deviation. The advantageous properties of the electrodes were its inherent stability with a very low background current. The electrode was applicable for analysis of spiked arsenic in tap water containing a significant amount of various ion elements. The results indicate that the metal-implanted method could be promising for controlling the electrochemical properties of diamond electrodes.