Synthesis of ZnO nanowire arrays/3D graphene foam and application for determination of levodopa in the presence of uric acid

Three-dimensional (3D) graphene foam (GF) was prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using nickel foam as the template. ZnO nanowire arrays (ZnO NWAs) were vertically grown on the 3D GF by hydrothermal synthesis to prepare ZnO NWAs/GF. This hybrid combines the properties of ZnO NWAs and 3D GF, which has favorable electrocatalysis and outstanding electrical conductivity. The vertically aligned ZnO NWAs grown on the GF enlarged the electroactive surface area, which was investigated from the Fe(CN)63-4+ redox kinetic study. The ZnO NWAs/GF was used as an electrochemical electrode for the determination of Levodopa (LD) in the presence of uric acid (UA). The electrochemical responses of the ZnO NWAs/GF electrode were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The results show that the sensitivity of the electrode for LD is 3.15 μA μM−1 in the concentration range of 0.05–20 μM and the measured detection limit of the electrode for LD is 50 nM. The electrode also shows good selectivity, reproducibility and stability. The proposed electrode is succsefully used to determine LD in human plasma samples and it is potential for use in clinical research.