Reaction of Various Reductants with Oxide Films on Pt Electrodes As Studied by the Surface Interrogation Mode of Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy (SI-SECM): Possible Validity of a Marcus Relationship

Abstract

The surface interrogation mode of scanning electrochemical microscopy (SI-SECM), an in situ method for the quantification of adsorbed intermediates at electrodes at open circuit, was used to evaluate the rate of reaction of four redox mediators of different reducing power (methyl viologen+ > Ru(NH3)62+ > Fe(II)[EDTA]2− > Fe(CN)64−) with electrogenerated platinum oxides (PtOx) at different pHs. The rate constant determined by SI-SECM was sensitive to the nature of the Pt oxide formed at different potentials. A simplified model with finite element method simulation was used to fit the SI-SECM experimental response. The extraction of kinetic constants and their comparison to the potential (reducing power) of the mediator yielded a Marcus-theory type relationship. Although these are clearly not outer sphere reactions, if subjected to the Marcus theory treatment, one can extract an estimated value of λ = 1.3 ± 0.3 eV for the reduction of “place exchanged” oxide, which forms with oxide coverage values larger than 0.5 (as PtO). Steady state feedback experiments were also conducted in which the reduced form of the mediators was oxidized at Pt with different oxide coverage, i.e., over a wide range of potentials. A comparison of SI-SECM kinetic analysis with the Pt substrate at open circuit to the case where an electrode bias is applied indicates that for Fe(II)[EDTA]2−, the feedback current follows the oxide coverage at the Pt substrate. We suggest that thin layers of oxide provide a chemical route in which the oxide mediates oxidation of the reduced electrogenerated species; this route is governed by the reactivity of the different species of oxide formed at the electrode and not necessarily by other effects, such as direct electron tunneling through the oxide layer