Effect of nonionic fluorosurfactant on the electrogenerated chemiluminescence of the tris(2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(II)/tri-n-propylamine system: lower oxidation potential and higher emission intensity.
Fluorosurfactants are commercially available, and their applications in electrochemical systems have been the interest of many studies. Here, we describe a novel effect of a nonionic fluorosurfactant (Zonyl FSN) on the electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) of the tris(2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(II)/tri-n-propylamine (TPrA) system at gold and platinum electrodes. Compared with its hydrocarbon analogue (Triton X-100), the adsorbed fluorosurfactant species not only rendered the electrode surfaces more hydrophobic but also significantly retarded the growth of the electrode oxide layers. As a result, more facile direct oxidation of TPrA was achieved, which led to the appearance of a low oxidation potential ECL signal (below 1.0 V vs SCE). At the gold electrode, the ECL peak appeared at 0.82 V, approximately 400 mV more negative than usual; while its intensity was approximately 50 times higher. The generation of the intense ECL signal at low oxidation potential may lead to the development of more efficient ECL analysis.
Li
Feng
F
Department of Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, PR China.
Zu
Yanbing
Y