Analytical in situ characterization of chemical reactivities at interfaces in aqueous systems

Local chemical reactivities influence strongly various processes at solid surfaces in the marine environment. Therefore, in situ measurements of interfacial properties with spatial resolution are needed. Such investigations can be performed with a new microscopic technique, the scanning electrochemical microscopy (Bard et al., 1989). Applications of this method to study interfaces such as carbon/aqueous solution and polymer structures in solution are reported. A home-made electrochemical microscope allowed the in situ characterization of permeation properties of surface layers at carbon.