A small direct catalytic methanol 'fuel cell' was used for analytical purposes. Three different formats were investigated for methanol and ethanol determination: two different Open Circuit Voltage (OCV) formats and a potentiostatic (i.e. amperometric) format; the latter was used if the current supplied by the cell was recorded. The measurement times using one or other of these three formats were much different. The time required by the potentiostatic format was more short for a suitable analytical measurement. The cell was used to check ethanol content in several commercial wine and beer samples and the possibility of using the fuel cell for the analytical measures in real samples, discussed. Lastly the results were compared with those obtained using two conventional amperometric enzyme sensors and statistical tests carried out. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

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A catalytic fuel cell has been employed to check ethanol content in several samples of commercial wines, beers and hard liquor drinks. Two other conventional biosensors, based on catalase or alcohol oxidase enzyme, were also used, to the same purpose, on the same samples. Data obtained by three sensor methods have been compared and correlated. Lastly t-test and F-test were applied.

It was already demonstrated by our research group that a direct catalytic methanol (or ethanol) fuel cell (DMFC) device can be used also for analytical purposes, such as the determination of ethanol content in beverages. In the present research we extended the application to the analysis of several ethanol-based pharmaceutical products, i.e., pharmaceutical tinctures (dyes) and disinfectants. In recent work we have also shown that the use of alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme as a component of the anodic section of a direct catalytic methanol (or ethanol) fuel cell significantly improves the performance of a simple DMFC device, making it more suitable to measure ethanol (or methanol) in real samples by this cell. At the same time, we have also shown that DMFC can respond to certain organic compounds that are more complex than methanol and ethanol and having R(R’)CH-OH group in the molecule. Firstly, pharmaceutical dyes were analyzed for their ethanol content using the simple catalytic DMFC device, with good accuracy and precision. The results are illustrated in the present paper. Additionally, a detailed investigation carried out on commercial denatured alcoholic samples evidenced several interferences due to the contained additives. Secondly, we hypothesized that by using the enzymatic fuel cell it would be possible to improve the determination, for instance, of certain antibiotics, such as imipenem, or else carry out determinations of ethanol content in saliva and serum (simulating forensic tests, correlated to drivers “breath test”); even if this has already been hypothesized in previous papers, the present study is the first to perform them experimentally, obtaining satisfactory results. In practice, all of the goals which we proposed were reached, confirming the remarkable opportunities of the enzymatic (or non-enzymatic) DMFC device.

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