A Reliable and Simple Voltammetric Method for Analysis of Brilliant Blue FCF

Synthetic food colourings are widely used because they are stable, inexpensive, reliable, and effective in shaping consumer perception and behaviour, even though some are under scrutiny for adverse health effects. In this work, we present a new sensitive voltammetric method for the determination of brilliant blue FCF (BB) using a cyclic renewable silver-based mercury film electrode (Hg(Ag)FE). The experimental parameters, including pulse height, step potential, preconcentration potential and duration, and the composition of the supporting electrolyte, were systematically optimised. Under these conditions, the calibration curve exhibited linearity within the range of 0.7 up to 250 µg L^-1. For an Hg(Ag)FE with a surface area of 10.9 mm², with a short preconcentration step of 15 s, the limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) of BB were 0.24 µg L^-1 and 0.72 µg L^-1, respectively. The repeatability of the method at a concentration level of the analyte as low as 2.0 µg L^-1, expressed as RSD, was 2.39% (<i>n</i> = 6). The proposed method was successfully applied in the analysis of brilliant blue FCF in popular beverages and artificial juices. The obtained results not only verify that BB levels are within acceptable limits, but also enrich the limited data on the quantitative compositions of 'popular' beverages.