The use of deep eutectic solvents (DES) for metal electrodeposition has become an area of interest in the recent years however the use of additives on the electrodeposition from deep eutectic solvents is still an unexplored area. In this study we describe the influence of the tartrate ion on the deposition mechanism of zinc and on the resultant morphology of the deposits. Electrochemical techniques were used to characterize the deposition process and scanning electron microscopy was used to study the deposit morphology. It is shown that the presence of potassium hydrogen tartrate in ethaline does not alter the generic voltammetric profile of zinc in solution but in contrast the presence of tartaric acid cause major modifications. From the analysis of the chronoamperometric transients a 3D progressive nucleation mechanism is proposed for the deposition of zinc in absence and in the presence of potassium hydrogen tartrate. In the presence of tartaric acid a 2D progressive nucleation mechanism is proposed for the initial part of the deposition then changing to a 3D progressive mechanism. The SEM images reveal that both additives change the morphological characteristics of the deposits. However the use of tartaric acid introduces a more dramatic change.
Electropolymerization from deep eutectic solvents (DES), a green alternative to room temperature ionic liquids, could be a convenient route to the fabrication of organic semiconductors at lower economic and environmental cost which has been barely studied in the literature. This work explores the novel use of choline-based solvents in the electrosynthesis of Polyaniline (PANI), a model conducting polymer. Different mixtures of choline chloride with ethylene glycol (Ethaline), glycerol (Glyceline), and urea (Reline) were prepared for these purposes. PANI was grown and characterized in-situ by Cyclic Voltammetry. Ex situ Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) unveiled the formation of dense matrices in the nanoscale from Ethaline and Glyceline but just a bunch of clusters from Reline. The large amounts of ionic and H bond donor species in these formulations, led to conductivities ten times higher than those for aqueous PANI (σ≈63 S • cm −1 ), great reversibility for the transitions between the different redox states of the polymer (indicating efficient charge transport and low amount of charge traps), and a limited stability toward continuous potential cycling in DES (associated to the increase in the water content). Nonetheless, the latter was significantly improved in aqueous media. More generally, the feasibility of electropolymerization processes using DES is demonstrated.
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