Investigation of electrochemical calcareous scaling: Potentiostatic current– and mass–time transients

The nucleation/growth process of calcium carbonate prepared by the electrochemical method, was studied by image analysis and by using a quartz microbalance. The mass–time transients are interpreted by using a model based on the nucleation of nuclei following a Poisson law, a linear growth with time of the nucleus area, and a vertical growth rate proportional to the free surface of the electrode left by the insulating scale. This study has demonstrated the feasability of the complete identification of the parameters controlling the 3D nucleation and growth of an insulating material. However, as the experiments were performed on different samples, it was not possible to obtain a perfect agreement between the two types of experiment: image analysis and gravimetric measurements.