DEPOSITION AND DETECTION OF ZINC AND OTHER METALS IN SOLUTION

摘要

A system for deposition and subsequently detecting an analyte, such as zinc ions, in an aqueous solution (12), includes a working electrode (14). All or a portion of the analyte in a test sample of the solution is selectively deposited on the working electrode by pulsing a voltage across the working electrode in the form of a plurality of short pulses each having a duration which is sufficiently short that electrochemical splitting of water is substantially avoided. The deposited analyte, in the form of zinc metal, is subsequently stripped from the working electrode. In one method, the deposited metal is replaced in a redox-type reaction with a detectable species, such as copper, which has reaction kinetics that allow stripping of the replacement species from the electrode at a slower rate than is the case with zinc.