Voltammetry

Voltammetry is a category of electroanalytical methods used in analytical chemistry and various industrial processes. In voltammetry, information about an analyte is obtained by measuring the current as the potential is varied. The analytical data for a voltammetric experiment comes in the form of a voltammogram which plots the current produced by the analyte versus the potential of the working electrode. Voltammetry is the study of current as a function of applied potential. Voltammetric methods involve electrochemical cells, and investigate the reactions occurring at electrode/electrolyte interfaces. The reactivity of analytes in these half-cells is used to determine their concentration. It is considered a dynamic electrochemical method as the applied potential is varied over time and the corresponding changes in current are measured. Most experiments control the potential (volts) of an electrode in contact with the analyte while measuring the resulting current (amperes). Electrochemical cells are used in voltammetric experiments to drive the redox reaction of the analyte. Like other electrochemical cells, two half-cells are required, one to facilitate reduction and the other oxidation. The cell consists of an analyte solution, an ionic electrolyte, and two or three electrodes, with oxidation and reduction reactions occurring at the electrode/electrolyte interfaces. As a species is oxidized, the electrons produced pass through an external electric circuit and generate a current, acting as an electron source for reduction. The generated currents are Faradaic currents, which follow Faraday’s law. As Faraday’s law states that the” number of moles of a substance, m, produced or consumed during an electrode process is proportional to the electric charge passed through the electrode” the faradaic currents allow analyte concentrations to be determined. Whether the analyte is reduced or oxidized depends on the analyte, but its reaction always occurs at the working/indicator electrode.