Polymer modified glassy carbon electrode for the electrochemical determination of caffeine in coffee

4-Amino-3-hydroxynaphthalene sulfonic acid (AHNSA) was electropolymerized on a glassy carbon electrode. The deposited film showed electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of caffeine. The polymer-modified electrode showed high sensitivity, selectivity and stability in the determination of caffeine in coffee. The peak current increased linearly with the concentration of caffeine in the range of 6 × 10-8 to 4 × 10 -5 mol L-1, with a detection limit of 1.37 × 10 -7 mol L-1 (LoD = 3δ/slope). Analysis of caffeine in coffee was affected neither by sample matrices nor by structurally similar compounds. Recoveries ranging between 93.75 ± 2.32 and 100.75 ± 3.32 were achieved from coffee extracts indicating the applicability of the developed method for real sample analyses. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.