Anisotropic etching of platinum electrodes at the onset of cathodic corrosion

Thomas J P Hersbach; Alexei I Yanson; Marc T M Koper

doi:10.1038/ncomms12653

Anisotropic etching of platinum electrodes at the onset of cathodic corrosion

Nat Commun. 2016 Aug 24:7:12653. doi: 10.1038/ncomms12653.

Authors

Thomas J P Hersbach¹, Alexei I Yanson², Marc T M Koper¹

Affiliations

¹ Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, PO Box 9502, Leiden 2300 RA, The Netherlands.
² Cosine Measurement Systems, Oosteinde 36, Warmond 2361 HE, The Netherlands.

Abstract

Cathodic corrosion is a process that etches metal electrodes under cathodic polarization. This process is presumed to occur through anionic metallic reaction intermediates, but the exact nature of these intermediates and the onset potential of their formation is unknown. Here we determine the onset potential of cathodic corrosion on platinum electrodes. Electrodes are characterized electrochemically before and after cathodic polarization in 10 M sodium hydroxide, revealing that changes in the electrode surface start at an electrode potential of -1.3 V versus the normal hydrogen electrode. The value of this onset potential rules out previous hypotheses regarding the nature of cathodic corrosion. Scanning electron microscopy shows the formation of well-defined etch pits with a specific orientation, which match the voltammetric data and indicate a remarkable anisotropy in the cathodic etching process, favouring the creation of (100) sites. Such anisotropy is hypothesized to be due to surface charge-induced adsorption of electrolyte cations.