Electrochemistry and electrocatalysis of binuclear cobalt phthalocyaninehexasulfonate–surfactant film modified electrode

Electrochemistry and electrocatalysis of binuclear cobalt phthalocyaninehexasulfonate sodium salt (bi-CoPc) were investigated successfully in liquid crystal films of didodecyldimethylammonium bromide (DDAB) on pyrolytic graphite (PG) electrodes in aqueous solution. This new bi-CoPc–surfactant film modified electrode could reduce aggregation of bi-CoPc in aqueous solution, which was confirmed by the electronic absorption spectra in the visible region and images of transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The charge transport diffusion coefficient (Dct) and apparent heterogeneous electrode reaction rate constant (ks) for this modified electrode were estimated. The reduction of bi-CoPc ligand showed excellent electrocatalytic ability for the reduction of trichloroacetic acid (TCA) and catalytic current had a linear relationship with the concentration of TCA in the range of 3×10−5–7.5×10−3 M. The reduction of bi-Co(III)Pc/bi-Co(II)Pc couple exhibited new pattern of catalytic reactivity in the reduction of oxygen. Peak current for the cathodic reduction of oxygen is proportion to the square root of the scan rate in the range of 5–1000 mV s−1 in oxygen-saturated solution.