Per- and polyfluoroalkyl
substances (PFAS) are emerging as harmful
environmental micropollutants. Generally, PFAS species are quantified
by mass spectrometry, for which a collected sample is taken to a centralized
facility. Robust techniques to quantify PFAS in the field are necessary
to diagnose environmental contamination at the earliest onset of pollution.
Here, we developed a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) electrode
for the detection of perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and explored
the MIP surface and the effects of interfering molecules. MIPs were
formed by the anodic deposition of o-phenylenediamine
(o-PD) in the presence of PFOS template molecules
on a glassy carbon macroelectrode. The performance of the resulting
MIP electrode was evaluated by the current obtained from the oxidation
of ferrocene carboxylic acid as the electrochemical probe. The MIP
electrode was able to detect PFOS with a detection limit of 0.05 nM,
which is lower than the health advisory limit of 0.14 nM reported
by the U.S. EPA. To better understand PFOS association into the MIP,
a Langmuir binding model was developed based on the changes in electrochemical
responses of the MIP. Fitting the model to the experimental data gave
an association constant (K
A
) of 4.95 × 1012 over a PFOS concentration
range of 0 to 0.05 nM. The binding isotherm of other commonly found
substances in contaminated water sources such as chloride, humic acid,
perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and perfluorobutanesulfonate (PFBS)
was also investigated. In the case of chloride and humic acid, the
calculated K
A
values
of 9.05 × 107 and 6.01 × 105, respectively,
indicate relatively weak adsorption of these species on the MIP. However,
PFOA, which is the carboxylate analog of PFOS, revealed a very close K
A
value (3.41 × 1012) to PFOS. A greater K
A
value (1.43 × 1013) was obtained for PFBS,
which possesses the same functional group and a smaller molecular
size compared to PFOS. The presented platform emphasizes the necessity
to develop new strategies to make MIP sensors more specific if practical
applications are to be pursued.