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Electrocatalysis and flow detection of alcohols at ruthenium dioxide‐modified electrodes
Author(s) -
Leech Donal,
Wang Joseph,
Smyth Malcolm R.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
electroanalysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 128
eISSN - 1521-4109
pISSN - 1040-0397
DOI - 10.1002/elan.1140030107
Subject(s) - electrocatalyst , ruthenium , methanol , electrode , chemistry , detection limit , carbon dioxide , electrochemistry , inorganic chemistry , ethanol , chromatography , catalysis , organic chemistry
Abstract Ruthenium dioxide‐(RuO 2 )‐containing carbon paste electrodes exhibiting electrocatalytic responses toward alcohols are described. The electrocatalytic behavior is exploited for developing a highly stable and sensitive flow‐detection scheme for simple alcohols with a constant‐potential operation (+0.4 V vs. Ag/AgCl). The optimization of the system with respect to variables such as pH, flow rate, operating potential, and RuO 2 –surface “loading” is reported. The electrode response as stable over 2 weeks with a signal loss of 6%. Repeated injections (60) of methanol over a 120 minute period yielded a relative standard deviation of 3.4%. Detection limits for the various alcohols are dependent on the number and position of the hydroxyl groups, with limits ranging from 30 ng for glycerol to 3 μg for ethanol. Use of these electrodes in liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection is envisaged.