Macroporous Ruthenium Oxide Electrodes for Electrochemical Applications

Abstract

In the present work, macroporous ruthenium oxide electrodes are prepared using two template techniques, on the one hand the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique and on the other hand the controlled evaporation (CE) method. In both cases, electrochemical deposition of ruthenium and ruthenium oxide is carried out on polystyrene endo-templates. With the Langmuir-Blodgett technique the number of polystyrene layers can be controlled, and with the CE method a highly networked porous structure is obtained. The CE method and the LB approach provide techniques for producing very high porosities on electrode surfaces. The large surface area due to this porous structure leads to good electrocatalytic activity. The porous ruthenium oxide was tested for pH sensing and for activation of direct NADH oxidation. Furthermore, the porous electrode was miniaturized to microelectrodes.