The industrial revolution caused the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere leading to a climate crisis. The impact of more CO2 in the atmosphere has been experienced by everybody. The summers are longer and hotter, while the winters are colder and shorter. The ocean water has become more acidic threatening the ocean life. There is an immediate need to reduce CO2 and switch to alternate energy for human survival. Electrochemical reduction of CO2 (ERC) is a promising technology capable of converting excess CO2 into valueded products. The process of recycling CO2 can address the problem of excess CO2 and is a sustainable solution until our dependence on fossil fuels is reduced. However, currently there are very few catalysts that can convert CO2 into valuable products with a low overpotential. The current research evaluates new catalysts for their ERC potential. [Ni(cyclam)]2+ is a well-known catalyst used to reduce CO2 homogeneously. Therefore, it was used as a standard to optimize the CO2 evaluation protocol. Two new catalysts developed in Dr. Hollis's laboratory, a Pt- pincer and a Fepincer molecule were assessed using this method. Cyclic voltammetry and bulkelectrolysis (BE) experiments were performed under Ar and CO2 environments. The gaseous products from BE were primarily CO and H2 and their quantitative measurement was performed using gas chromatography. Formate determination was performed using UV-Vis spectroscopy. Faradaic yields were calculated for CO, H2, and formate. The overpotentials were calculated for all the processes, and a comparison was made to determine the most efficient process. The turnover numbers (TON) and the turnover frequencies (TOF) of all the catalysts were calculated. Based on all the criteria, the Fepincer complex was determined to be the most promising catalyst for further optimization. Additionally, a Faradaic efficiency calculation spreadsheet was created to improve calculation efficiency. The protocol described here has been successfully applied to assess new catalysts and can prove to be an invaluable tool when numerous catalysts require evaluation.

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Hydrogen molybdenum oxide, known has molybdenum bronze, is a material of interest due to catalyzing electron transfer reactions. Specifically, molybdenum bronze is an electrocatalyst toward carbon dioxide reduction. Electrochemical deposition from a peroxymolybdic acid solution is a method for preparing molybdenum bronze films. This work demonstrates reproducible electrodeposition on indium tin oxide substrates and conductive carbon paper. Film thickness depends on concentration, time and pH. After characterization by film thickness, resistance, XRD and XPS, the as deposited films served as the working electrode for electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide in 0.1 M NaHCO3. Ion chromatography determined formate resulting in 8% faradaic efficiency at an applied potential of -0.4 V. Interestingly, this potential is similar to use of formate dehydrogenase as an electrocatalyst. Carbon monoxide levels were attempted to be determined by GC in the headspace of an H type electrochemical cell. Results show that these films are applicable towards electrochemical CO2 reduction to formate when supported on carbon.

L’objectif principal de ce travail de thèse était d’évaluer les propriétés électro catalytiques de différents composés moléculaires vis-à-vis de la réduction électrochimique basse température du dioxyde de carbone, en vue d’applications dans des cellules d’électrolyse à électrolyte polymère solide. Après avoir mesuré les performances de métaux modèles (cuivre et nickel) servant de référence, nous avons testé les performances de quelques composés moléculaires à base de nickel. Le rôle catalytique de ces différents composés a été mis en évidence en mesurant les courbes intensité-potentiel dans différents milieux. Nous avons évalué l’importance de la source en hydrogène dans le mécanisme réactionnel. Les produits de réduction du dioxyde de carbone formés dans le mélange réactionnel ont été analysés par chromatographie en phase gazeuse. Nous avons ensuite abordé la possibilité de développer des cellules d’électrolyse à électrolyte polymère solide. Nous avons testé des cellules utilisant soit des anodes à eau liquide pour le dégagement d’oxygène, soit des anodes à hydrogène gazeux. L’utilisation de complexes moléculaires à base de nickel à la cathode a permis d’abaisser le potentiel de la cathode et de réduire le CO₂ mais la réaction de dégagement d’hydrogène reste prédominante. / The main objective of this research work was to put into evidence the electrocatalytic activity of various molecular compounds with regard to the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide, at low temperature, in view of potential application in PEM cells. First, reference values have been measured on copper and nickel metals. Then the performances of some molecular compounds have been measured. The electrochemical activity of these different compounds has been put into evidence by recording the current-potential relationships in various media. The role of a hydrogen source for the reduction processes has been evaluated. The formation of reduction products has been put into evidence and analyzed by gas phase chromatography. Then, a PEM cell has been developed and preliminary tests have been performed. PEM cells with either an oxygen-evolving anode or a hydrogen-consuming anode have been tested. Using nickel molecular complexes, it has been possible to lower the potential of the cathode and to reduce CO₂ but the parasite hydrogen evolution reaction was found to remain predominant.

Superoxide, the product of the one-electron reduction of dioxygen, is a molecule of enormous importance. It participates in a variety of critical physiological processes and is also an important component of fuel cells where it is an intermediate in the cathodic reaction. However, the electrochemical behavior of superoxide, mainly its reduction, is not well understood. Here, the electrochemical behavior of superoxide has been investigated in acetonitrile on glassy carbon electrodes, through cyclic voltammetry experiments. By stabilizing the electrogenerated superoxide, aprotic solvents afford an opportunity to study its electrochemical reactions further. Superoxide was generated electrochemically from dioxygen at the first voltammetric peak. In the presence of hydrogen-bond donors (water, methanol, 2-propanol), the superoxide forms a complex with the donor resulting in a positive shift in the formal potential which can be analyzed to obtain formation constants for these complexes. Stronger acids (2,2,2- trifluoroethanol, 4-tert-butylphenol) result in protonation of superoxide followed by reduction to produce HO₂-. On scanning to more negative potentials a second peak is observed which is irreversible and extremely drawn out along the potential axis indicating a small value of the transfer coefficient α. Addition of hydrogenbond donors, HA, brings about a positive shift in this peak, without a noticeable change in shape. The reaction occurring at the second peak is a concerted proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) in which the electron is transferred to superoxide and a proton is transferred from HA to superoxide forming HO₂- and A- in a concerted process. We estimate the standard potential for this reaction for the case of water as the donor. This value suggests that the reaction at the second peak occurs at very high driving forces. Kinetic simulations using both Butler-Volmer and Marcusian schemes were performed to estimate the kinetic parameters. The unusually low rate constants obtained suggest high nonadiabaticity for this PCET reaction. The reaction was also found to proceed with an unusually large reorganization energy. Consistent with a PCET, a kinetic isotope effect, HA vs. DA, was detected for the three hydrogen-bond donors.

Orientador: Lauro Tatsuo Kubota / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Química / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T13:04:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Camargo_MaiuiNagaoLindqquerde_M.pdf: 3614340 bytes, checksum: 6d1263c93417d379a0c3010830acb5e6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Este trabalho visa demonstrar como o grau de redução do óxido de grafeno eletroquimicamente reduzido (ERGO) pode ser modulado dependendo das condições experimentais utilizadas para se fazer a redução eletroquímica, e como ele influencia nas propriedades eletroquímicas do material final. Esta influência pôde ser constatada por medidas eletroquímicas, de espectroscopia Raman e de fotoelétrons excitados por raios-X (XPS). Através de experimentos eletroquímicos feitos na presença da sonda de ferri/ferrocianeto de potássio, foi possível demonstrar que os eletrodos de ouro modificados com os ERGOs com maiores graus de redução se comportam eletroquimicamente de maneira similar ao não modificado, e portanto, a redução dos grupos oxigenados da superfície do material é importante para que essa similaridade seja atingida. No entanto, essa sonda não permite monitorar o balanço entre grupos oxidados e reduzidos e para fazer isso, foi escolhida uma sonda eletroativa sensível aos grupos oxigenados. Análises feitas na presença de ?-nicotinamida adenina dinucleotídeo (NADH) demonstraram que grupos funcionais oxigenados essenciais para a oxidação dessa espécie estavam diminuindo na superfície do material com o aumento do grau de redução deste. Os espectros de Raman e de XPS também confirmaram essa informação. Além disso, a capacidade adsortiva do ERGO foi testada utilizando o corante Azul de Meldola. Novamente, o grau de redução do ERGO teve papel fundamental, uma vez que interações ?-? ou eletrostáticas podem ser favorecidas entre o ERGO e o corante, dependendo do grau de redução do primeiro, implicando em propriedades distintas dos materiais frente a oxidação de NADH / Abstract: This work aims to demonstrate how the extent of reduction of the electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (ERGO) can be modulated depending on the experimental conditions used for performing the electrochemical reduction, and how it influences on the electrochemical properties of the final material. This influence can be verified by electrochemical, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements. By means of electrochemical experiments carried out in the presence of the ferro/ferricyanide probe, it was possible to demonstrate that the gold electrodes modified with the ERGOs with higher extents of reduction behave electrochemically in a similar manner to the non-modified, and therefore, the reduction of the oxygenated groups on the surface of the material is important for this similarity to be reached. However, this probe does not permit the monitoring of the balance between oxidized and reduced groups and to do so, an electroactive probe sensitive to the oxygenated groups was chosen. Analyses done in the presence of ?-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) enabled the conclusion that the oxygenated functional groups essential for the oxidation of this species decreased on the surface of the material with the increase of the extent of reduction. The Raman and XPS spectra also confirmed this information. Apart from this, the adsorptive capacity of the ERGO was tested using the dye Meldola's Blue. Once again, the extent of reduction of the ERGO had a fundamental role, since ?-? or electrostatic interactions can be favoured to occur between the ERGO and the dye, depending on the extent of reduction of the former, leading to distinct properties of the materials regarding NADH oxidation / Mestrado / Quimica Analitica / Mestra em Química

Magister Scientiae - MSc (Chemistry) / In this study, graphene oxide was synthesized by oxidizing graphite using the modified Hummer's method. The graphene oxide was characterized by Raman Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-Ray Diffraction for structural and morphological properties. The graphene oxide was electrochemically reduced on a carbon paste electrode followed by the in situ deposition of mercury thin films to achieve electrochemically reduced graphene oxide modified carbon paste metal film electrodes (ERGO-CP-MEs). The experimental parameters (amplitude, deposition time, deposition potential, frequency and rotation speed) were optimized, and the applicability of the modified electrode was investigated towards the simultaneous and individual determination of TI1+ and In3+ at the low concentration levels (?g L-1) in 0.1 M acetate buffer (pH 4.6) using square wave anodic stripping voltammetry (SWASV). The detection limit values for individual analysis at electrochemically reduced graphene oxide modified carbon paste mercury film electrode (ERGO-CP-HgE ) was 2.4 and 1.1 ?g L-1 for TI1+ and In3+, respectively. The detection limit values for simultaneous analysis at ERGO-CPE was 1.32 and 1.33 ?g L-1 and individual analysis was 0.975 and 1.04 ?g L-1 for TI1+ and In3+, respectively.

The threat of the ongoing climate crisis requires the complete reduction of carbon emissions in the next two to three decades. Carbon dioxide electrochemical reduction (CO₂ER) poses a promising pathway to be able to maintain our current energy infrastructures in a carbon neutral fashion, by allowing the production of fuels and chemicals, such as CO, methanol and ethylene, with the use of carbon capture technologies and green energy. Thus far, Cu is the only metal that has demonstrated the ability to form hydrocarbon products. However, Cu is hindered by low selectivity. Improvements have been observed by coupling Cu with noble metals, such as Ag and Au. However, despite significant advancements, the technology has yet to achieve sufficient performance in activity, stability and selectivity for commercial viability. As such, this work pursued to further advance the activity of CO₂ER through the use of plasmonic Cu-based catalysts and the study of novel dinitrile-based electrolytes. It has recently been identified that CO₂ER can benefit from direct plasmonic effects induced by light illumination. In essence, certain light wavelengths can induce collective oscillations of the free electrons in the metallic particles, leading to an enhancement of their electrocatalytic performance. As such, the first project of this work involved the development and testing of plasmonic Cu-Ag bimetallic catalysts for the application of CO₂ER. Cu, Ag, as well as Cu-Ag bimetallic particles with variable morphologies were able to be synthesized through a facile one-pot sodium borohydride chemical reduction method. The synthesized catalyst performance was also compared to commercial catalysts. The synthesized particles were found to be active catalysts for CO₂ER, with improved electro-catalytic activities exhibited by Cu₈₅Ag₁₅, Cu₆₀Ag₄₀ and Cu syntheses in respective order. All nanoparticles demonstrated increases in the catalytic activity ranging between 15-26% under white light illumination, attributed to plasmonic promotion. The best plasmonic promotion of 26% was observed in the CuAg commercial alloy. Meanwhile, the best promotion of the synthesized bimetallic particles was of 18% found in the Cu₆₀Ag₄₀ catalyst. Additionally, improved electrochemical and plasmonic stability was observed with the use of the Cu-Ag bimetallic synthesized structures compared to monometallic Cu. In addition, most studies pertaining CO₂ER involve aqueous electrolytes due to their low cost and low toxicity. However, these systems are hindered by mass transfer limitations due to the low solubility of CO₂ in water. Organic-based electrolytes have been subjects of research as they possess higher CO₂ solubilities to water. As dinitriles pose a novelty in the role of CO₂ER, dinitrile-based electrolytes were studied and tested for the application. It was hypothesized that due to the decreased polarity in dinitrile solvents, CO₂ concentrations in the electrolyte would increase leading to improved catalytic activity. The testing was conducted by evaluating and comparing acetonitrile (ACN), adiponitrile (ADN) and sebaconitrile (SBN) solvent-based electrolytes. Increased CO₂ solubility was observed in the dinitriles with 582 mM and 503 mM of dissolved CO₂ in ADN and SBN respectively, compared to 270 mM in ACN. Results were corroborated through DFT modelling, indicating preference of CO₂ absorbance to nitrile groups on the molecules. However, despite increases in CO₂ concentration, the electrochemical activity decreased from ACN > ADN > SBN. The trend in activity was observed to be inversely proportional to the viscosity of the dinitrile solvents, which affected the ionic conductivity. Based on these developments, the present thesis opens a new perspective for the use of Cu-based nanoparticles for direct plasmonic enhancement with the use of a broad-range wavelength white light. Furthermore, the work also sheds light on the properties and resulting electrocatalytic activities of the use of dinitrile organic electrolytes for CO₂ER. The presented findings provide significant groundwork for further developments in the realm of CO₂ER.

The electrochemic's behaviour of the bile acids (cholic, glycocholic, deoxycholic, ursodeoxycholic and lithocholic acid) was studied on the meniscus-modified silver solid amalgam electrode (m-AgSAE) by differential pulse voltammery. Bile acids provide in the solution of the Britton - Robinson buffer and methanol (9:1) in the pH range 3.0 to 12.0 a cathodal signal in the high negative potentials: cholic acid, deoxycholic acid, ursodeoxycholic acid and lithocholic acid about −1400 mV and glycocholic acid, which alone is the conjugate with glycine, about −1500 mV. Cholic acid, glycocholic acid, deoxycholic acid and ursodeoxycholic acid provide the highest peaks to pH 5.0, approximately in their pKa values. Lithocholic acid provides peaks from pH 7.0. It was demonstrated by the cyclic voltammetry that the electrochemical behavior is influenced by the adsorption of the bile acids to the electrode; presumed reaction at the working electrode - a reduction of a proton of a carboxylic group, is controlled by the diffusion and the process is quasireversible. Utilization of the electrochemical reduction of bile acids for the voltammetric determination does not seem very suitable. It has been proven that the presence of the methanol deteriorates the measuring results for glycocholic acid. In the presence of...

This thesis examines the use of electrochemically treated viscose rayon based activated carbon cloth (ACC) for the removal of metal ions from aqueous effluent streams. Two types of treatment were performed: (i) electrochemical oxidation and (ii) electrochemical reduction to enhance cation and anion sorption capacities of the ACC, respectively. Electrochemical oxidation resulted in a loss of 61% BET surface area due to blockage of pores through formation of carboxylic acidic groups but its cation exchange capacity and oxygen content increased by 365% and 121%, respectively. The optimum constant current at which a combination of applied current and oxidation time at any extent of oxidation to produce ACC of maximum cation exchange capacity was found to be 1.1 A, with voltage of 4.2 V and current density of 0.8 mA/m2. Batch sorption experiments showed that the maximum copper and lead sorption capacities for electrochemically oxidised ACC increased 17 and 4 times, respectively, for noncompetitive sorption and 8.8 and 8.6 times, respectively for competitive sorption. Therefore, electrochemically oxidised ACC is an effective adsorbent for treating aqueous solution contaminated with copper/lead in both single component and multi-component systems. Industrial wastewaters are multicomponent systems, therefore, electrochemical oxidation of ACC is an efficient way of enhancing lead and copper ions sorptive capacity for industrial wastewater treatment. Electrochemical reduction resulted in a loss of 28% BET surface area due to formation of ether groups but its anion exchange capacity increased by 292%. The optimum constant current at which a combination of applied current and reduction time at any extent of reduction to produce ACC of maximum anion exchange capacity was found to be 5.5 A, with voltage of 9.8 V and current density of 6.4 mA/m2. Batch sorption experiments showed that the maximum chromium(VI) sorption capacity for electrochemically reduced ACC increased 2.12 times, with highest maximum chromium(VI) sorption capacity of 3.8 mmol/g at solution pH 4. Most industrial wastewaters contaminated with chromium(VI) are highly acidic, therefore, electrochemical reduction of ACC is an efficient way of enhancing chromium(VI) sorptive capacity for industrial wastewater treatment.