I was starting a new work by using organic electrolytes instead of aqueous solutions. However, after using an Ag/AgCl reference electrode in a DMSO electrolyte solution it got destroyed. Is there any suggestion for electrode references in organic media? Is there any problem of using SCE as reference electrode in DMSO?
Thank you for your time.
Hi,
I would recommend just using a pseudo reference electrode such as a Ag/AgO and then calibrate the pseudo reference electrode to a in-situ reaction.
Hi, the same answer like Gustav. I have used a silver wire instead of Ag/AgCl in past and result seems to be OK. Just use Fc/Fc* as a standard.
For a true reference electrode you can purchase a non-aqueous electrolyte set, e.g.
https://www.basinc.com/products/ec/ref.php
You can put any non-aqueous solvent/electrolyte in there that you want (as long as the Ag+ and Ag wire are stable). The pack has lots of spare glass frits, so will last a long time. They don't tend to last very long so need to be checked at least weekly vs. ferrocene. With DMSO, leave the reference electrode somewhere constantly warm so it does not freeze overnight, or it can block the frit.
You can even make something similar yourself, replacing the glass sintered frit with a molecular sieve, e.g. section 2.2 in the below paper
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221854998_The_hydrogen_evolution_reaction_in_a_room_temperature_ionic_liquid_Mechanism_and_electrocatalyst_trends
Article The hydrogen evolution reaction in a room temperature ionic ...
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Chemistry
- Electrochemistry