Electrode potentials Electrolysis

Studies aimed at characterizing the mechanisms of electrode reactions often make use of coulometry for determining the number of electrons involved in the reaction. To make such measurements a known amount of a pure compound is subject to a controlled-potential electrolysis. The coulombs of charge needed to complete the electrolysis are used to determine the value of n using Faraday s law (equation 11.23). 

Anodic stripping voltammetry consists of two steps (Figure 11.37). The first is a controlled potential electrolysis in which the working electrode, usually a hanging mercury drop or mercury film, is held at a cathodic potential sufficient to deposit the metal ion on the electrode. For example, with Cu + the deposition reaction is... 

As the corrosion rate, inclusive of local-cell corrosion, of a metal is related to electrode potential, usually by means of the Tafel equation and, of course, Faraday s second law of electrolysis, a necessary precursor to corrosion rate calculation is the assessment of electrode potential distribution on each metal in a system. In the absence of significant concentration variations in the electrolyte, a condition certainly satisfied in most practical sea-water systems, the exact prediction of electrode potential distribution at a given time involves the solution of the Laplace equation for the electrostatic potential (P) in the electrolyte at the position given by the three spatial coordinates (x, y, z). 

Overpotential. It has been found by experiment that the decomposition voltage of an electrolyte varies with the nature of the electrodes employed for the electrolysis and is, in many instances, higher than that calculated from the difference of the reversible electrode potentials. The excess voltage over the calculated back e.m.f. is termed the overpotential. Overpotential may occur at the anode as well as at the cathode. The decomposition voltage ED is therefore ... 

In the common method of electro-gravimetric analysis, a potential slightly in excess of the decomposition potential of the electrolyte under investigation is applied, and the electrolysis allowed to proceed without further attention, except perhaps occasionally to increase the applied potential to keep the current at approximately the same value. This procedure, termed constant-current electrolysis, is (as explained in Section 12.4) of limited value for the separation of mixtures of metallic ions. The separation of the components of a mixture where the decomposition potentials are not widely separated may be effected by the application of controlled cathode potential electrolysis. An auxiliary standard electrode (which may be a saturated calomel electrode with the tip of the salt bridge very close to the cathode or working electrode) is inserted in the... 

Electrical units 503, 519 Electrification due to wiping 77 Electro-analysis see Electrolysis and Electrogravimetry Electrochemical series 63 Electro-deposition completeness of, 507 Electrode potentials 60 change of during titration, 360 Nernst equation of, 60 reversible, 63 standard 60, (T) 62 Electrode reactions 505 Electrodeless discharge lamps 790 Electrodes antimony, 555 auxiliary, 538, 545 bimetallic, 575... 

The impure copper from either process is refined electrolytically it is made into anodes and plated onto cathodes of pure copper. Other metals may be present in the impure copper and those with highly positive electrode potentials also are reduced. The rare metals—most notably, platinum, silver, and gold—obtained from the anode sludge are sold to recover much of the cost of the electricity used in the electrolysis. 

One possible reason for the reluctance of non-electrochemists to venture into this field is that in contrast to the electrochemists claim that controlled potential electrolysis offers a method for the selective introduction of energy into molecules, many electrode reactions carried out at a controlled potential have still been reported to give low yields and a diversity of products. The electrode potential is, however, only one of several variables and the lack of selectivity in the electrode process may be attributed to a failure to understand and to control all the parameters of the overall electrode reaction. 

Hence, it is important to remember that the products, reaction mechanism and the rate of the process may depend on the history and pretreatment of the electrode and that, indeed, the activity of the electrode may change during the timescale of a preparative electrolysis. Certainly, the mechanism and products may depend on the solution conditions and the electrode potential, purely because of the effect of these parameters on the state of the electrode surface. 

Controlled potential electrolysis of the substrates, at —1.4V vs. SCE, at a carbon felt electrode on which only 3.6x10" mol Bjj were immobilized (approx. 1 X 10 ° mol cm" ) resulted in the production of 76pmol of valeronitrile 16, corresponding to a turnover number of 2100 This example shows that the combination of inner sphere redox mediators and high surface electrodes is promising. 

In the example just studied, the electrolysis of HC1 solution, the ions that transport the current (H+ and Cl-) are also the ones that are discharged at the electrodes. In other cases, however, the main ionic transporters of current may not be of the same species as the ions that are discharged. An excellent example is the electrolysis of CuS04 solution between platinum electrodes. A one molal CuS04 solution is quite acid so that the positive current transporters are both Cu2+ and H+ ions. The main negative transporter is the S04 ions. The solution contains, however, a small concentration of OH- ions. In order to determine which ions will be discharged at the electrodes, it is necessary to consider standard electrode potentials of the concerned species ... 

Chronopotentiometry at a dme appeared to be impossible until Kies828 recently developed polarography with controlled current density, i.e., with a current density sweep. He explained the method as follows. The high current density during the first stage of the drop life results in the initiation of a secondary electrolysis process at a more negative electrode potential followed by a reverse reaction with rapid (reversible) systems because of the increase in the electrode potential. 

Controlled-potential electrolysis (CPE) represents an improvement over the previous constant-potential method this is attained by the application of an emf across the electrodes that yields a cathodic potential as negative as is acceptable in view of current density limitations and without taking the risk that the less noble metal is deposited hence the technique requires non-faradaic control of the cathodic potential versus the solution. 

In many instances electrogravimetry must be preceded by a separation between metals suitably this can be an electroseparation by means of constant-current electrolysis as previously described, but more attractively an electroseparation by means of controlled-potential electrolysis at a mercury pool or sometimes at an amalgamated Pt or brass gauze electrode. In this way one can either concentrate the metal of interest on the Hg or remove other metals from the solution alternatively, it can be a rougher separation, i.e., the concentration of a group of metals such as Fe, Ni, Co, Cu, Zn and Cd on the Hg whilst other metals such as alkali and alkaline earth metals, Be, Al, Ti and Zr remain in solution151. In all these procedures specific separation effects can be... 

Fig. 5.18 Potentiostatic methods (A) single-pulse method, (B), (C) double-pulse methods (B for an electrocrystallization study and C for the study of products of electrolysis during the first pulse), (D) potential-sweep voltammetry, (E) triangular pulse voltammetry, (F) a series of pulses for electrode preparation, (G) cyclic voltammetry (the last pulse is recorded), (H) d.c. polarography (the electrode potential during the drop-time is considered constant this fact is expressed by the step function of time—actually the potential increases continuously), (I) a.c. polarography and (J) pulse polarography...

Tanaka et al.150 reported that in the presence of [Ru(bpy)2-C02](PF6)2, controlled-potential electrolysis of a C02-saturated H20/DMF (9/1 v/v) solution at -1.5 V versus SCE using an Hg pool electrode gave CO and H2 in acidic conditions, and formic acid and CO as well as H2 in alkaline conditions. 

Cyclic voltammetry, square-wave voltammetry, and controlled potential electrolysis were used to study the electrochemical oxidation behavior of niclosamide at a glassy carbon electrode. The number of electrons transferred, the wave characteristics, the diffusion coefficient and reversibility of the reactions were investigated. Following optimization of voltammetric parameters, pH, and reproducibility, a linear calibration curve over the range 1 x 10 6 to 1 x 10 4 mol/dm3 niclosamide was achieved. The detection limit was found to be 8 x 10 7 mol/dm3. This voltammetric method was applied for the determination of niclosamide in tablets [33]. 

A number of metal porphyrins have been examined as electrocatalysts for H20 reduction to H2. Cobalt complexes of water soluble masri-tetrakis(7V-methylpyridinium-4-yl)porphyrin chloride, meso-tetrakis(4-pyridyl)porphyrin, and mam-tetrakis(A,A,A-trimethylamlinium-4-yl)porphyrin chloride have been shown to catalyze H2 production via controlled potential electrolysis at relatively low overpotential (—0.95 V vs. SCE at Hg pool in 0.1 M in fluoroacetic acid), with nearly 100% current efficiency.12 Since the electrode kinetics appeared to be dominated by porphyrin adsorption at the electrode surface, H2-evolution catalysts have been examined at Co-porphyrin films on electrode surfaces.13,14 These catalytic systems appeared to be limited by slow electron transfer or poor stability.13 However, CoTPP incorporated into a Nafion membrane coated on a Pt electrode shows high activity for H2 production, and the catalysis takes place at the theoretical potential of H+/H2.14... 

Several metallophthalocyanines have been reported to be active toward the electroreduction of C02 in aqueous electrolyte especially when immobilized on an electrode surface.125-127 CoPc and, to a lesser extent, NiPc appear to be the most active phthalocyanine complexes in this respect. Several techniques have been used for their immobilization.128,129 In a typical experiment, controlled potential electrolysis conducted with such modified electrodes at —1.0 vs. SCE (pH 5) leads to CO as the major reduction product (rj = 60%) besides H2, although another study indicates that HCOO is mainly obtained.129 It has been more recently shown that the reduction selectivity is improved when the CoPc is incorporated in a polyvinyl pyridine membrane (ratio of CO to H2 around 6 at pH 5). This was ascribed to the nature of the membrane which is coordinative and weakly basic. The microenvironment around CoPc provided by partially protonated pyridine species was suggested to be important.130,131 The mechanism of C02 reduction on CoPc is thought to involve the initial formation of a hydride derivative followed by its reduction associated with the insertion of C02.128... 

This reduction has been performed in water at glassy carbon electrodes modified by the cluster [Mo2Fe6S8(SC6H5)9](H-Bu4N)3 by controlled-potential electrolysis at —1.25 V vs. SCE, with a... 

Very recently a new kind of electrocatalyst has been propounded using the dinuclear quinone-containing complex of ruthenium (25).492,493 Controlled-potential electrolysis of the complex at 1.70 V vs. Ag AgCl in H20 + CF3CH2OH evolves dioxygen with a current efficiency of 91% (21 turnovers). The turnover number of 02 evolution increases up to 33,500 when the electrolysis is carried out in water (pH 4.0) with an indium-tin oxide(ITO) electrode to which the complex is bound. It has been suggested that the four-electron oxidation of water is achieved by redox reactions of not only the two Run/Ruin couples, but also the two semiquinone/quinone couples of the molecule. 

OTTLE cells have a considerable IR drop and are thus unsuitable for kinetic measurements. However, bulk electrolysis can be achieved in a few seconds and the whole solution can thus reach quasi-equilibrium with the electrode potential. The cells are generally designed around the use of Teflon spacers, the minimum thickness of which is around 50 pm. This renders the OTTLE cell capable of obtaining both UV-visible and IR spectra of solution species providing that, in the latter case, the solvent employed is not water. 

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