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Gamry 1010E Potentiostat/Galvanostat

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Gamry 1010E Potentiostat/Galvanostat#

There are many more techniques that can be performed with a potentiostat. We will focus on just one (cyclic voltammetry) for this module.

Procedure#

  1. Make sure the power to the potentiostat is on. The switch is on the back of the instrument, so you will have to reach around to locate it. (Look for the power LED)

  2. Attach the potentiostat leads to the calibration “cell” (the circuit board looking thing). If there are alligator clips attached to the leads, you can pull them off. Just make sure to grip the colored portion of the banana jack and not the wire. The colors of the appropriate leads are screen printed on the circuit board.

    Caution

    Be absolutely sure that you are connected the leads to the appropriate positions.

    It’s good practice to connect them in the following order:

    1. Counter (red,orange clips)

    2. Reference (white clip)

    3. Working (blue, green clips).

    The Counter is the electrode with the long wire, the reference electrode is the clear tip stored in the solution vial (MR-5275) with a white lid. The platinum working electrode is the solid black electrode.

  3. Open the Gamry Framework software.

  4. Go to Experiment ‣ Physical Electrochemistry ‣ Cyclic Voltammetry

  5. Set the parameters as follows:

    Initial E (V):

    0

    Scan Limit 1 (V):

    0.5

    Scan Limit 2 (V):

    -0.5

    Final E (V):

    0

    All other defaults should be good to use.

  6. Click OK. If it complains about the calibration, ignore it for this module. If it asks to replace a file, click Yes.

  7. When the scan is complete (in not very apparent text, it says “Experiment done” in the bottom left of the open window), press F2 on the keyboard.

  8. Disconnect all leads from the calibration cell and attach the alligator clips. Note that the reference lead (white) uses a specific clip.

  9. Find the electrochemical cell to the right of the computer. Electrodes have already been immersed in this saturated NaCl solution. Attach the orange clip to the copper post on the electrode furthest to the right. Attach the red clip to the orange clip. Attach the white clip to the electrode furthest to the left (white wire). Attach the blue clip to the center electrode. Attach the green clip to the blue clip.

  10. Make sure that none of the alligator clips are touching each other (excluding the blue/green and orange/red pairs) or anything conductive.

  11. Repeat the CV, but this time, name your file (Output File) RCV-NaCl.DTA.

  12. When complete (remember to press F2), disconnect all electrodes, close Gamry Framework, and turn off the potentiostat.

  13. Open Gamry Echem Analyst.

  14. Click the open button on the toolbar and select both RCV.DTA and RCV-NaCl.DTA. You can hold down Ctrl on the keyboard while clicking to select multiple files. Open them separately.

  15. Use the data to answer the questions below and close the software when you are finished.

Questions#

  1. What is the slope of the resulting line for the calibration cell?

  2. Does the slope make sense provided the values on the calibration cell?

  3. How does the shape of the curve for the saturated NaCl differ from the first run?

  4. If we were to model our electrochemical cell with an equivalent circuit diagram, what components might we need to mimic the aqueous solution of NaCl? Consider how current is changing with respect to voltage.

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