I would like to know basically in which medium Ag/AgCl reference electrode we should use? Whether acidic or basic, in which medium it works perfectly?
Dear Dr. Sabiar Rahaman ,
I suggest you to have a look at the similar question "Is it possible to use Ag/AgCl reference electrode in alkali medium?" present here in Rg, available at:
https://www.researchgate.net/post/Is-it-possible-to-use-Ag-AgCl-reference-electrode-in-alkali-medium
My best regards, Pierluigi Traverso.
I don´t think that using Ag/AgCl electrode for alkaline electrolytes is a good idea.
While having alkaline electrolyte in working electrode compartment, there was NaCl or KCl in reference electrode compartments. So, the potential of Ag/AgCl electrode should be stable in both cases. But I see two main problems here.
1. There is a membrane potential at the interface between two electrolytes, in the first case 0.1 M NaOH | sat. NaCl and in the second case 0.1 M KOH | 4M KCl. It can be calculated or measured and then taken into account. But I am not sure that it was done.
2. There will be leaking of electrolytes from one compartment to another. The rate of the leaking depends on the electrode and cell constructions, it may be very slow or rather fast. There will be certainly Cl- present in working compartment, and basic pH in RE compartment.
Thank you, Pierluigi Traverso and Mohamed Khedawy, for your answers.
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