Issue 24, 2011

The electro-oxidation of formate ions at a polycrystalline Pt electrode in alkaline solution: an in situFTIR study

Abstract

This paper reports in situFTIR studies on the oxidation of formate at polycrystalline Pt in aqueous KOH. Data are presented which show that hydroxyl species play a major role in the electro-oxidation of small organic molecules under alkaline conditions at polycrystalline Pt, and that a number of possible mechanistic pathways are possible. Small changes in experimental conditions appear to be able to cause the reaction to flick between these pathways; for example, the presence of oxygen has a marked effect upon the observed electrochemistry. In contrast to acid solution, our postulated model includes the formation of intermediates bonded through O atoms, rather than C, as being an important option in alkaline solution. Finally, the pH distribution across the reflective electrode in external reflectance IR is modelled and significant variations in pH across the electrode surface in FTIR cells predicted and confirmed experimentally.

Graphical abstract: The electro-oxidation of formate ions at a polycrystalline Pt electrode in alkaline solution: an in situFTIR study

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
19 Jan 2011
Accepted
03 May 2011
First published
24 May 2011
This article is Open Access

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2011,13, 11739-11747

The electro-oxidation of formate ions at a polycrystalline Pt electrode in alkaline solution: an in situFTIR study

P. A. Christensen, A. Hamnett and D. Linares-Moya, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2011, 13, 11739 DOI: 10.1039/C1CP20166B

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