Direct electrochemical evidence suggests that aqueous microdroplets spontaneously produce hydrogen peroxide.

ABSTRACT: Recent reports have detailed the striking observation that electroactive molecules, such as hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and radical water species (H₂O^.+/H₂O^.-), are spontaneously produced in aqueous microdroplets. Stochastic electrochemistry allows one to study reactions in real-time occurring inside subfemtoliter droplets, one droplet at a time, when a microdroplet irreversibly adsorbs to an ultramicroelectrode surface (radius ~ 5 µm). Here, we use stochastic electrochemistry to probe the formation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) in single aqueous microdroplets suspended in 1,2-dichloroethane. The oxidation of H₂O₂ at alkaline pH (11.5) differs from near-neutral conditions (6.4), allowin

SUBMITTER: Krushinski LE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10962973 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature