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Analytical Chemistry Chemical Cytometry Quantitates Superoxide

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Figure 6. Comparison between simulated (curves) and experimental<br />

(symbols) thicknesses of the diffusion layer at disk electrodes of<br />

various radii: δz/δconf (dashed lines, O) and δ/δconf (solid curve, 0).<br />

error in the current obtained by the model is |i - ihemisph|/<br />

|ihemisph| ) 0.07.<br />

Finally, variation of δz issued from the mapping of concentration<br />

profiles in Figure 4 is reported in Figure 6 as a function of<br />

the electrode size and then compared to the predicted one. The<br />

diffusion layer thicknesses, δ, estimated from the experimental<br />

steady-state currents (through eq 8) are also plotted. As observed,<br />

all these data show that the model applies satisfactorily under the<br />

steady-state regime to predict the influence of natural convection<br />

on current responses or concentration profiles.<br />

CONCLUSION<br />

The model elaborated in this work predicts within a very<br />

good accuracy the relative contributions of diffusion and natural<br />

convection to the mass transport at disk electrodes. The<br />

electrochemical behaviors of the electrodes not only are related<br />

to their dimensions but also depend on the time scale of the<br />

experiment and thickness of the convection-free layer (i.e.,<br />

δconv). These results stress once more the futility of trying<br />

to propose an absolute definition of ultramicroelectrodes<br />

based on the objects themselves. Indeed, the same electrode<br />

may behave as a microelectrode or an ultramicroelectrode,<br />

depending on these parameters. Our model allowed us to<br />

clearly delineate the situations where natural convection<br />

alters both the dynamic and steady-state regimes at disk<br />

electrodes. The properties of ultramicroelectrodes are mainly<br />

achieved when r0/δconv < 0.2. This condition has practical<br />

consequences if one needs, for example, to exploit the<br />

characteristics of ultramicroelectrodes to detect or measure<br />

concentrations in restricted volumes, without any alteration<br />

of natural convection on the measurements.<br />

ACKNOWLEDGMENT<br />

This work has been supported in part by the CNRS (Grant<br />

UMR8640), Ecole Normale Superieure, UPMC, and French<br />

Ministry of Research.<br />

Received for review May 7, 2010. Accepted July 9, 2010.<br />

AC101210R<br />

<strong>Analytical</strong> <strong>Chemistry</strong>, Vol. 82, No. 16, August 15, 2010<br />

6939

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