Modelling of the rotating disk electrode in Ionic liquids: difference between water based and ionic liquids electrolytes A. Giaccherini1, A. Lavacchi2 1INSTM, Firenze, Italy, 2ICCOM - CNR, Firenze, Italy *Corresponding author: via Lastruccia 3-13 50019, Sesto Fiorentino (FI), [email protected] Abstract: The last few years experienced a The former allows to validate the model by rapid growth in the application of Ionic means of comparison with the experimental Liquids (IL’s) to electrodeposition. ILs voltammograms, the last allows to offer a variety of advantages over aqueous rationalize the peculiar mass transport electrolytes. In general ILs show large properties of the Ils. In particular, thanks to chemical and thermal stability, high ionic the comparison of the concentration profiles conductivity and an electrochemical window and fluxes at the steady and quasi-steady much larger than water. These properties states of the potential scan for both systems, together with their negligible vapor pressure we clarified the nature of the unexpected enabling their use at different temperatures peaks show by the experimental without any risk of generating harmful voltammograms. vapors and joined to the absence of hydrogen discharge interfering with Keywords: Levich equation, Ionic Liquids, electrodeposition processes, as they are Transport proprieties, RDE, essentially hydrophobic, make them the best electroanalytical, CFD. candidates to be used for the obtainment of homogeneous electrodeposited thin films. 1. Introduction This study focuses on the silver electrodeposition from a silver Research on electrodeposition has recently tetrafluoroborate solution in 1-butyl-3- focused on the quest for new electrolytes methyltetrafluoroborate BMImBF4. We alternative to water. This was mainly driven notice that practical deposition rate at even by the need to develop new and green concentrations were much lower in ionic electrodeposition processes. Major liquids as compared to water electrolytes an breakthroughs were the discovery of Ionic investigation of mass transport has been Liquids which application to undertaken. Hydrodynamic voltammetry electrodeposition boomed in the first 2000’s with Rotating Disk Electrode (RDE) of and deep eutectic solvents based on ferrocene/ferrocinium solutions in environmentally benign compounds (e.g BMImBF4 have been performed in order to choline and urea). The deposition of an estimate diffusion coefficient for the extremely large variety of thin and thick different systems. Eventually, simulation of films of metals and alloys from these novel the RDE voltammetry based on the FEA electrolytes has been demonstrated at the lab (Finite Elements Analysis) have been scale. performed. Laminar flow has been imposed The problem related to water-based galvanic to compute the steady state solution of the bath are, among others, the limited Navier-Stokes equation (laminar flow) and electrochemical window (1.23V) imparing then it has been solved the electrochemical the deposition of many elements (eg. process in the high conductivity regime. Aluminum, Silicon and Titanium etc…) and Thus solving only the transport proprieties involving, in most cases, noxious or neglecting the potential drop of the polluting chemical species. Oppositely, ionic electrolyte. Two different process has been liquids and DES have stability windows that simulated: the actual voltammetries in IL in certain cases exceed 6V. Despite such and an equivalent voltammetries in water. definite advatange and the research effort, Excerpt from the Proceedings of the 2016 COMSOL Conference in Munich IL’s are still not fully exploited in the estimate the size of the boundary layers. The electrodeposition technologies, with only a calculation have been performed both in few systems commercially available water and in BMImBF4 to highlight the solutions for extremely specialized niches of differences between the two solvents. application. The cause for such slow development of this 2. Model field is that extremely complex task constituted by the switching The necessity to understand the nature of the electrodeposition from water to IL’s. Among peak present in the RDE voltammetries several concerns such as the higher costs, performed in IL lead to definition of a stability of the solvents, necessity of numerical model of the RDE. The 3D dedicated galvanic lines (usually under geometry of the RDE has a cylindrical controlled atmosphere) the transport symmetry, thus the numerical domain can be proprieties affect definitely the stability of reduced to a simple 2D axisymmetric the coating process. We focus on this critical geometry, constituted by an embedded disk aspects of the electrochemical process. A electrode, located on the axis of symmetry significant difference in viscosity between of the system (Figure 1). For the purpose of water electrolytes and IL’s exists. Water has perform a dedicated comparison with a dynamic viscosity of 1 cp while most IL’s experimental data we designed a domain range between one and two order of with the same volume and geometry of the magnitude higher than that. By means of real volume interested in the experiments FEA (Finite Elements Analysis), as (just the electrolyte under the level of the implemented in Comsol Multiphysics, we working electrode). The electrochemical investigated the mass transport in highly media are constituted by Ferrocene (3.83 -3 viscous solvents to highlight the differences mol m ) in BMImBF4 or water, between electrodeposition in water and that characterized by chemical and physical in ionic liquids. Such complexity arises from proprieties reported in Table 1. The the fact that viscosity affect both the electrochemical reaction controlling the diffusion coefficient of reacting species and current in the RDE voltammetry is the development of the velocity field in the associated with the Ferrocene electrolyte. Thus, things gets more difficult (FeCen)/Ferrocinium (FeCin) redox couple: when convection is involved. In this work we report the results of an extensive FeCen FeCin + e- investigation on convection in a highly viscous Ionic Liquid to unravel the elements The calculation has been performed by that concur to the mass transport limitation means of the simulation program COMSOL of such electrolytes. Multiphysics® with the electroanalytical To do so we analyze the case the RDE and the CFD (Computational Fluidynamics) voltammetries performed on the modules. Ferrocene/Ferrocinium redox couple in BMImBF4. This IL is known to have a viscosity of 100 cp that is ideal to emphasize the effect of viscosity on electrodeposition. We have realized a series of experiment in well-defined convective conditions (RDE experiments). These experiments have then be modeled by a finite element analysis to understand the concentration profile and to Excerpt from the Proceedings of the 2016 COMSOL Conference in Munich Sliding wall Slip condition Electro de (1) Zero pressure condition 2. The resulting laminar flow advection Axisimmetric condition field has been given as input of the electroanalytical interface, to solve No slip for the time dependent current in order to estimate the characteristic curve of the RDE voltammetry. Usually at the lab-scale, with such very high conducting electrolytes, the distribution of the electric Zero potential potential can be neglected. In this condition context the Ohm’s law, equation (2) is not considered, while the Nersnt- Figure 1. Scheme showing the cell Plank equation (3) constitute the geometry considered for the RDE with the only governing equation for this part set of boundary condition considered in this of the model. work. The electrolyte domain is a square with an edge of 50mm and the segments (2) represent the radius of the embedded disk electrode (1.5mm) and the embedding cylinder (5mm). (3) 2.1 Governing equations is the electric potential in the electrolyte; is the conductivity of the electrolyte and The uncoupled problem has been solved in is the electric charge. In the Nernst- two step: Plank: Where ci, Di, ui, and zi are the concentration, the diffusion coefficient, the 1. Solution for the stationary state of the mobility and the charge of the of the ith Navier-Stokes equation(1). In a species, respectively; F the Faraday’s typical «Rotating Disk Electrode» constant; the velocity field; R the reaction (RDE), the cylindrical symmetry i term for A and B. Due to the neglecting of implies a laminar flow even at high rotation speed. Exploiting the equation (2), meaning that an homogenous distribution of the electric potential in the symmetry of the system, we reduce the 3D RDE domain to a 2D intermediate assumed, thus axisymmetric domain as reported in the migration term in equation (3) has been not considered since. In order to calculate figure 1. The 3D velocity is reproduced from the 2D velocity the change in composition of the electrolyte near the electrodes due to electron transfer, field thanks to the use of the “swirl flow” option in COMSOL it’s well established the validity of the following Faraday equation (3): Multiphysics® which solves implicitlty for the azimuthal coordinate for an axisymmetric (3) problem. Excerpt from the Proceedings of the 2016 COMSOL Conference in Munich limiting velocity (Navier-Stokes) and on the is the faradaic current density for the limiting current (Nernst-Planck). For mth process, nm is the number of electrons Navier-Stokes equations we chose a exchanged. triangular mesh with the boundary layers on two of the edges, constituted