Electrode metal

Robertson and Michaels investigated the location of the electrochemical reaction sites for platinum electrodes on zirconia.28 Experiments were performed with varying partial pressures of oxygen in inert (partial pressures from 10-5 to 

The amount of oxygen adsorbed in the three-phase region has been found to depend linearly on the exchange current density for different catalyst-electrodes under similar conditions.31,32 This indicates that the electrocatalytic reaction takes place at the three-phase boundary. Vayenas and co-workers pointed out that for less porous electrodes the charge-transfer reaction at the two-phase boundary might become important and that under some conditions oxygen on the electrolyte surface itself might play a role. 

Other metals, such as copper, nickel, or silver, have been used as electrode materials in connection with specific applications, such as the detection of amino acids or carbohydrates in alkaline media (copper and nickel) and cyanide or sulfur compounds (silver). Unlike platinum or gold electrodes, these electrodes offer a stable response for carbohydrates at constant potentials, through the formation of high-valence oxyhydroxide species formed in situ on the surface and believed to act as redox mediators (40,41). Bismuth film electrodes (preplated or in situ plated ones) have been shown to be an attractive alternative to mercury films used for stripping voltammetry of trace metals (42,43). Alloy electrodes (e.g., platinum-ruthenium, nickel-titanium) are also being used for addressing adsorption or corrosion effects of one of their components. The bifunctional catalytic mechanism of alloy electrodes (such as Pt-Ru or Pt-Sn ones) has been particularly useful for fuel cell applications (44). 

The recrystallization technique is also effective for sparingly soluble salts e.g. KCIO4, when the solubility of the salt greatly changes with temperature. However, highly soluble salts such as KHCO3 caimot be effectively purified by reciystallization. 

The product distribution in CO2 reduction varies widely, depending primarily on the electrode metals and the electrolyte solutions used for the reaction. Various reactions proceed simultaneously in parallel on the electrode surface. The electrode provides the site of the reaction, and the product selectivity in CO- reduction is affected by whether or not the reactants and other related species are adsorbed. The selectivity also depends on the strength of the adsorption, if any species is adsorbed on the surface. The electrolyte solution determines the concentration and the stnbilitv of the reac- 

Before the results are presented, some important points should be mentioned in connection with the reports of CO2 reduction. Some papers give only the values of the faradaic efficiency of tire products of CO2 reduction in constant potential electrolysis without showing the values of the current density. Other ones do not present electrode potential in constant current electrolysis. It is impossible to evaluate tire rate of the reaction as well as the quality of the measurements in the electrolysis measurements without tire current density and the electrode potential. Thus these electrochemical parameters should be presented in any publications. Additionally, it is also important to state whether or not the electrolyte solution used for the work was purified by any means in tire experiment. The features of reaction change to a great extent, when tire electrode surface is contaminated with extremely small amount of impurities possibly contained in chemical reagents of the highest quality. 

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Electrode processes are a class of heterogeneous chemical reaction that involves the transfer of charge across the interface between a solid and an adjacent solution phase, either in equilibrium or under partial or total kinetic control. A simple type of electrode reaction involves electron transfer between an inert metal electrode and an ion or molecule in solution. Oxidation of an electroactive species corresponds to the transfer of electrons from the solution phase to the electrode (anodic), whereas electron transfer in the opposite direction results in the reduction of the species (cathodic). Electron transfer is only possible when the electroactive material is within molecular distances of the electrode surface thus for a simple electrode reaction involving solution species of the fonn... 

Photoelectrochemistry may be used as an in situ teclmique for the characterization of surface films fonned on metal electrodes during corrosion. Analysis of the spectra allows the identification of semiconductor surface phases and the characterization of their thickness and electronic properties. 

Morrison S R 1980 Electrochemistry at Semiconductor and Oxidized Metal Electrodes (New York Plenum) Dean M FI and Slimming U 1987 J. Electroanal. Chem. 228 135 Boehni FI 1987 Langmuir 3 924... 

During the past decades, anionic and cationic adsorjDtion on metal electrodes have been intensively investigated. 

When first developed, potentiometry was restricted to redox equilibria at metallic electrodes, limiting its application to a few ions. In 1906, Cremer discovered that a potential difference exists between the two sides of a thin glass membrane when opposite sides of the membrane are in contact with solutions containing different concentrations of H3O+. This discovery led to the development of the glass pH electrode in 1909. Other types of membranes also yield useful potentials. Kolthoff and Sanders, for example, showed in 1937 that pellets made from AgCl could be used to determine the concentration of Ag+. Electrodes based on membrane potentials are called ion-selective electrodes, and their continued development has extended potentiometry to a diverse array of analytes. 

The potential of the indicator electrode in a potentiometric electrochemical cell is proportional to the concentration of analyte. Two classes of indicator electrodes are used in potentiometry metallic electrodes, which are the subject of this section, and ion-selective electrodes, which are covered in the next section. 

The potential of a metallic electrode is determined by the position of a redox reaction at the electrode-solution interface. Three types of metallic electrodes are commonly used in potentiometry, each of which is considered in the following discussion. 

A metallic electrode whose potential is a function of the concentration of M"+ in an M"+/M redox half-reaction. 

Redox Electrodes Electrodes of the first and second kind develop a potential as the result of a redox reaction in which the metallic electrode undergoes a change in its oxidation state. Metallic electrodes also can serve simply as a source of, or a sink for, electrons in other redox reactions. Such electrodes are called redox electrodes. The Pt cathode in Example 11.1 is an example of a redox electrode because its potential is determined by the concentrations of Ee + and Ee + in the indicator half-cell. Note that the potential of a redox electrode generally responds to the concentration of more than one ion, limiting their usefulness for direct potentiometry. 

If metallic electrodes were the only useful class of indicator electrodes, potentiometry would be of limited applicability. The discovery, in 1906, that a thin glass membrane develops a potential, called a membrane potential, when opposite sides of the membrane are in contact with solutions of different pH led to the eventual development of a whole new class of indicator electrodes called ion-selective electrodes (ISEs). following the discovery of the glass pH electrode, ion-selective electrodes have been developed for a wide range of ions. Membrane electrodes also have been developed that respond to the concentration of molecular analytes by using a chemical reaction to generate an ion that can be monitored with an ion-selective electrode. The development of new membrane electrodes continues to be an active area of research. 

The relative measurement error in concentration, therefore, is determined by the magnitude of the error in measuring the cell s potential and by the charge of the analyte. Representative values are shown in Table 11.7 for ions with charges of+1 and +2, at a temperature of 25 °C. Accuracies of 1-5% for monovalent ions and 2-10% for divalent ions are typical. Although equation 11.22 was developed for membrane electrodes, it also applies to metallic electrodes of the first and second kind when z is replaced by n. 

Potentiometric electrodes are divided into two classes metallic electrodes and membrane electrodes. The smaller of these classes are the metallic electrodes. Electrodes of the first kind respond to the concentration of their cation in solution thus the potential of an Ag wire is determined by the concentration of Ag+ in solution. When another species is present in solution and in equilibrium with the metal ion, then the electrode s potential will respond to the concentration of that ion. Eor example, an Ag wire in contact with a solution of Ck will respond to the concentration of Ck since the relative concentrations of Ag+ and Ck are fixed by the solubility product for AgCl. Such electrodes are called electrodes of the second kind. 

Application of an electric field between two metal electrodes causes a few ions and electrons to be desorbed and is surface or thermal emission (see Chapter 7 for more information on thermal ionization). Unless the electrodes are heated strongly, the number of electrons emitted is very small, but, even at normal temperatures, this emission does add to the small number of electrons caused by cosmic radiation and is continuous. 

Schematic diagram of a flame ionization detector. Ions and electrons formed in the flame provide an electrically conducting path between the flame at earth potential and an insulated cylindrical metal electrode at high potential. surrounding the flame the flow of current is monitored, amplified, and passed to the recording system.

Electron donor molecules are oxidized in solution easily. Eor example, for TTE is 0.33V vs SCE in acetonitrile. Similarly, electron acceptors such as TCNQ are reduced easily. TCNQ exhibits a reduction wave at — 0.06V vs SCE in acetonitrile. The redox potentials can be adjusted by derivatizing the donor and acceptor molecules, and this tuning of HOMO and LUMO levels can be used to tailor charge-transfer and conductivity properties of the material. Knowledge of HOMO and LUMO levels can also be used to choose materials for efficient charge injection from metallic electrodes. 

Presentiy, multilayer capacitors and packaging make up more than half the electronic ceramics market. For multilayer capacitors, more than 20 biUion units are manufactured a year, outnumbering by far any other electronic ceramic component. Multilayer ceramics and hybrid packages consist of alternating layers of dielectric and metal electrodes, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, respectively. The driving force for these compact configurations is miniaturization. 

Multilayer Capacitors. Multilayer capacitors (MLC), at greater than 30 biUion units per year, outnumber any other ferroelectric device in production. Multilayer capacitors consist of alternating layers of dielectric material and metal electrodes, as shown in Figure 7. The reason for this configuration is miniaturization of the capacitor. Capacitance is given by... 

Electromagnetic flow meters ate avadable with various liner and electrode materials. Liner and electrode selection is governed by the corrosion characteristics of the Hquid. Eor corrosive chemicals, fluoropolymer or ceramic liners and noble metal electrodes are commonly used polyurethane or mbber and stainless steel electrodes are often used for abrasive slurries. Some fluids tend to form an insulating coating on the electrodes introducing errors or loss of signal. To overcome this problem, specially shaped electrodes are avadable that extend into the flow stream and tend to self-clean. In another approach, the electrodes are periodically vibrated at ultrasonic frequencies. 

In gas metal-arc, also called metal inert gas (MIG) welding, the arc is stmck between the workpiece and a metal electrode that is consumed as it is transferred in the form of molten droplets across the arc into the weld joint. Using a predominantiy argon shield gas, the droplets are transferred with Httie radial dispersion. Using pure helium, on the other hand, the droplets are larger and have more of a tendency to spray radially from the arc s axis. 

Electrode Walls. Development of durable electrode wads, one of the most critical issues for MHD generators, has proceeded in two basic directions ceramic electrodes operating at very high surface temperatures (>2000 K) for use in channels operating with clean fuels such as natural gas, and cooled metal electrodes with surface temperatures in the range 500—800 K for channels operating with slag or ash-laden flows. 

Because ozone formation occurs only within these microdischarge channels, ozone-production efficiency for the most part depends on the strength of the microdischarges, which is influenced by a number of factors such as the gap width, pressure, properties of the dielectric and metal electrode, power... 

Pig. 3. Representation of the electrical double layer at a metal electrode—solution interface for the case where anions occupy the inner Helmholtz plane... 

Potentiometric Titrations. If one wishes to analyze electroactive analytes that are not ions or for which ion-selective electrodes are not available, two problems arise. First, the working electrodes, such as silver, platinum, mercury, etc, are not selective. Second, metallic electrodes may exhibit mixed potentials, which may arise from a variety of causes. For example, silver may exchange electrons with redox couples in solution, sense Ag" via electron exchange with the external circuit, or tarnish to produce pH-sensitive oxide sites or Ag2S sites that are sensitive to sulfide and haUde. On the other... 

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