Anodic electrochemiluminescence (ECL) emission was for the first time observed from noble metal nanoparticles under coreactants. In this work, we present a novel ECL sensor based on Pt nanoclusters/graphene (Pt NCs/GR) hybrid with triethanolamine (TEA) as the coreactant for the trace detection of copper ion (Cu2+). GR significantly enhanced the anode ECL signal, due to its superior electron conduction. The ECL intensity could be greatly weakened by addition of Cu2+. The proposed protocol offered a highly sensitive, selective and recyclable method for detection of Cu2+ with a wide linear range from 1.0 x 10(-4) to 2.0 x 10(-1) mg/L and a low detection limit of 1.0 x 10(-4) mg/L Furthermore, the practicability of the ECL sensor in real water sample was also tested, showing that the ECL sensor based on Pt NCs/GR could be a promising alternative method for the monitoring of the Cu2+ in real sample. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.