A simple and efficient cyclic square wave voltammetric method for simultaneous determination of epinephrine and norepinephrine using an activated pencil graphite electrode.

• Epinephrine (EP) and norepinephrine (NP) electrochemical discrimination. • Cost-effective, disposable electroactivated pencil graphite electrode (PGE*). • Developed and validated method based on cyclic square wave voltammetry (CSWV). • Sensitive, simple, reliable individual and/or simultaneous EP and NP determination. • Selective and affordable tool for rapid pharmaceutical samples analysis. Simultaneous determination of catecholamine neurotransmitters epinephrine (EP) and norepinephrine (NP) using an electrochemically activated pencil graphite electrode (PGE*) is reported. Response characteristics of the PGE* toward the mentioned compounds were investigated by cyclic square wave voltammetry. In a mixture of analytes the peak currents of EP and NP increased with concentrations between 2.5 × 10−6 and 2.5 × 10−4 M. Detection limits of 8.32 × 10−7 M for EP and 9.92 × 10−7 M for NP were attained. The method was applied for their quantification in pharmaceutical and human plasma samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]