In Situ Growth of Magnesium Oxide Nanoparticles on ITO Electrodes as Electrocatalysts for Detecting Bisphenol A in Thermal Paper

Here, MgO nanoparticles/ITO electrodes were fabricated through the hydrothermal method and utilized for monitoring bisphenol A (BPA). Various characterization analyses were utilized, including SEM, XRD, Raman, and FTIR techniques, to investigate the modified electrode’s morphology and structure. The modified sensor shows an LOD of 1.13 nmol L−1 over a linear range of 50 nmol L−1–10 µmol L−1. Here, fourteen thermal paper receipt samples were randomly obtained from the local markets in Jeddah, KSA. Then, BPS was extracted and analyzed using electrochemical methods. The results indicated that (i) forty percent of the samples investigated showed high BPA levels, and (ii) twenty-seven percent of the samples showed low BPA levels, while (iii) twenty-three percent of the samples showed very low or no BPA. The significance of this study is related to its health effects, recent legal restrictions by the EU, and frequent exposure to BPA sources. Our future work will focus on achieving quantitative analysis of BPA in thermal paper samples. Furthermore, we recommend that wearing gloves be mandatory, especially for people with regular work-related exposure to thermal paper.