Electrocatalytic activity of Schiff base containing copper phthalocyanines towards the detection of catechol: Effect of heteroatoms and asymmetry

In this study, four new copper phthalocyanine complexes were synthesised and studied as electrocatalysts for the detection of catechol. Two of these complexes were derived from a symmetrical benzaldehyde phthalocyanine complex via the condensation of the benzaldehyde substituents with amine reagents. The electrocatalyst proved to be highly stable towards the detection of catechol. The oxidation peaks obtained using cyclic voltammetry range from 0.20 to 0.38 V. Detection limits were obtained via chronoamperometry and are as low as 0.16 µM and fairly high sensitives being obtained. Overall all four copper complexes exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity towards the electrooxidation of catechol.