Fixed Area Mercury Electrode: a Sensitive Device for Electro Analysis

Abstract

CONCENTRATIONS of electro-active species down to 10−4 mole/l. can be determined by conventional polarography1. Though this method offers a renewable surface, it has the disadvantage that the area is both variable and rather small (about 0.02 cm2). The potential sweep method2 enables concentrations as low as 10−5 mole/l. to be measured by increasing the area of the pool, but the area is not renewable and contamination of the pool electrode is therefore inevitable. This report describes a device combining the advantages of both techniques (Fig. 1).