Fabrication and electrochemical behavior of a sol–gel-derived carbon ceramic composite electrode entrapping 2:18-molybdodiphosphate

A new type of inorganic–organic hybrid material incorporating carbon powder and α-type 2:18-molybdodiphosphate (P2Mo18) in a methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMOS) based gel has been produced by a sol–gel process and used to fabricate a chemically modified electrode. The P2Mo18-doped carbon ceramic composite electrode was characterized using SEM and cyclic voltammetry. Square-wave voltammetry with an excellent sensitivity was exploited to conveniently investigate the dependence of current and half-wave potential (E1/2) on pH. The chemically modified electrode has some advantages over the modified film electrodes constructed by the conventional methods, such as long-term stability, reproducibility, and especially repeatability of surface-renewal by simple polishing in the event of surface fouling or dopant leaching. In addition, the modified electrode shows a good catalytic activity for the electrochemical reduction of bromate in an acidic aqueous solution.