doi:10.1016/j.elecom.2004.05.025 
Copyright © 2004 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Electrocatalytic reduction of oxygen to water at Au nanoclusters vacuum-evaporated on boron-doped diamond in acidic solution
a Physical Chemistry Laboratory, Division of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Hokkaido University, N10W8 Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0810, Japan
b CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Kawaguchi 332-0012, Japan
Received 13 May 2004;
Revised 24 May 2004;
accepted 25 May 2004.
Available online 17 June 2004.
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Abstract
Electrocatalytic reduction of oxygen at a boron (B)-doped diamond (BDD) electrode on which Au nanoclusters (GNCs) were deposited by vacuum-evaporation was investigated in 50 mM H2SO4 solution. Oxygen reduction current started to flow at a more positive potential at the GNCs/BDD electrode than at a polycrystalline gold electrode. Formation of water through a 4-electron reduction pathway at the GNCs/BDD electrode was confirmed, although oxygen reduction at gold electrodes in acidic solutions generally proceeds via a 2-electron pathway generating H2O2.
Author Keywords: Au nanoclusters; (B)-doped diamond electrode; Oxygen reduction; Electrocatalysis; Heat treatment
Fig. 1. Schematic view of the 4-electrode elecrochemical cell.
Fig. 2. SEM images of: (a) as-deposited; (b) annealed Au(0.3 nm)/BDD surfaces; (c) as-deposited; (d) annealed Au(3.0 nm)/BDD surfaces.
Fig. 3. Cyclic voltammograms of: (a) as-deposited Au(0.3 nm)/BDD; (b) as-deposited Au(3.0 nm)/BDD; (c) Au(poly.) electrodes in 50 mM H2SO4 solution. Potential sweep rate: 100 mV s−1.
Fig. 4. Current–potential curves of a BDD electrode in deaerated (dotted line) and oxygen-saturated (solid line) 50 mM H2SO4 solution.
Fig. 5. Simultaneously obtained current–potential curves at the Au probe (upper panels) and sample (lower panels) electrodes in oxygen-saturated 50 mM H2SO4 solution. ((a) and (b)): as-deposited (broken lines) and annealed (dotted lines) Au(0.3 nm)/BDD electrodes, ((c) and (d)): as-deposited (broken lines) and annealed (dotted lines) Au(3.0 nm)/BDD electrodes. In all panels, the current–potential curves obtained for the Au(poly.) electrode are shown as a reference (solid lines).
Fig. 6. Wavelength dependent absorption coefficients of bare BDD (solid lines), as-deposited GNCs/BDD (dotted lines), and heat-treated GNCs/BDD (broken lines) for the equivalent Au thicknesses of: (a) Au(0.3 nm); (b) Au(3.0 nm). These data were calculated from data sets obtained by spectro-ellipsometry.
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