Electrochemical Characterization of Mass Transport in Porous Electrodes

Mass transport in reticulated vitreous carbon electrodes in flow by mode has been studied with the cathodic deposition of copper as a model reaction. Two methods characterizing mass transport are being compared. The first one relies on determination of the electrorecovery kinetics under mass-transfer limiting conditions in galvanostatic mode. The second method is the determination of the limiting current by a linear potential sweep technique. This technique has been modified to allow for a more unambiguous limiting current determination. In some cases, the modified linear sweep technique can also be used to measure the influence of a gaseous reaction side products on mass transport.