A quartz tube based Ag/Ag+ reference electrode with a tungsten tip junction for an electrochemical study in molten salts

Abstract

A newly designed Ag/Ag+ reference electrode in a quartz tube with a tungsten tip junction (W-tip-Quartz- REF) was fabricated and its electrochemical performance was compared with a conventional Pyrex tube-based Ag/Ag+ reference electrode (Py-REF). The results of the electrochemical potential measurements with the W-tip-Quartz- REF and the Py-REF in the LiCl-KCl eutectic melts for a wide temperature range proved that the oxide layer on the surface of the tungsten metal tip provided a high ionic conduction. Stability of our newly designed W-tip-Quartz-REF was tested by measuring a junction potential for 12 hours at 700°C. The results of the cyclic voltammetric measurement indicated that the Ag/Ag+ reference electrode in the quartz tube with a tungsten tip junction can provide a good performance for a wide temperature range.