Electrochemical characteristics of dopamine oxidation at palladium hexacyanoferrate film, electroless plated on aluminum electrode

A novel electrode material was obtained at an aluminum electrode (Al) by a simple electroless method including two consecutive procedures: (i) the electroless deposition of metallic palladium on the Al electrode surface from PdCl₂ + 25% ammonia solution and (ii) the chemical transformation of deposited palladium to the palladium hexacyanoferrate (PdHCF) films in a solution containing 0.5 M K₃Fe(CN)₆]. The modified Al electrode demonstrated a well-behaved redox couple due to the redox reaction of the PdHCF film. The PdHCF film showed an excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the oxidation of dopamine (DA). The effect of solution pH on the voltammetric response of DA has been investigated. A linear calibration graph was obtained over the DA concentration range 2-51 mM. The rate constant k and transfer coefficient α for the catalytic reaction and the diffusion coefficient of DA in the solution D, were found to be 4.67 × 10² M⁻¹ s⁻¹, 0.63 and 2.5 × 10⁻⁶ cm² s⁻¹, respectively. The interference of ascorbic acid was investigated and greatly reduced using a thin film of Nafion on the modified electrode. The modified electrode indicated reproducible behavior and a high level stability during electrochemical experiments, making it particularly suitable for the analytical purposes.