Silver nanoparticles electrooxidation: Theory and experiment

Abstract

This article presents the findings of microscopic and electrochemical studies of electrooxidation of silver nanoparticles of varying sizes in comparison with "bulk" silver. Silver particles were immobilized on the surface of indifferent carbon-containing screen-printed electrodes. Vacuum-deposited silver represented the "bulk" electrode. The calculations and experimental studies demonstrated that the transition from macro- to nanostructural electrodes is followed by a shift of the maximum current potential of metal oxidation into the area with more negative potentials. A positive correlation between experimental and calculated data confirms once again a relevant application of the earlier proposed mathematical model and the possible use of the shift of the maximum current potential of electrooxidation to describe the electrochemical activity and surface energy properties of metal nanoparticles. © Springer-Verlag 2012.