Self-Contained Hydrogen Electrode

The Convenient Hydrogen Electrode (21) (CHE) or the Self-Contained Hydrogen Electrode (22) (SCHE) is an RE with a hydrogen bubble contained within the electrode body that replaces the hydrogen gas supply required for typical hydrogen REs. The thin layer of solution drawn by capillary action onto the platinized electrode surface quickly... 

Convenient Hydrogen (CHE)/Self-Contained Hydrogen (SCHE) Electrodes... 

In the first part of this century, electrochemical research was mainly devoted to the mercury electrode in an aqueous electrolyte solution. A mercury electrode has a number of advantageous properties for electrochemical research its surface can be kept clean, it has a large overpotential for hydrogen evolution and both the interfacial tension and capacitance can be measured. In his famous review [1], D. C. Grahame made the firm statement that Nearly everything one desires to know about the electrical double layer is ascertainable with mercury surfaces if it is ascertainable at all. At that time, electrochemistry was a self-contained field with a natural basis in thermodynamics and chemical kinetics. Meanwhile, the development of quantum mechanics led to considerable progress in solid-state physics and, later, to the understanding of electrostatic and electrodynamic phenomena at metal and semiconductor interfaces. 

The grids of both flat-plate and tubular batteries should not contain antimony or any other additive that may decrease the hydrogen overpotential of the negative electrode. Indeed, it is recommended that ultra-pure lead be used to manufacture both the grids and the active material in order to avoid the possibility of excessive self-discharge at either the positive or the negative plates. 

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