Electrochemical oxidation of water on synthetic boron-doped diamond thin film anodes

Electrolysis in aqueous 1 M HClO4 and 1 M H2SO4 solutions has been carried out under galvanostatic conditions using boron-doped diamond electrodes (BDD). Analyses of the oxidation products have shown that in 1 M HClO4 the main reaction is oxygen evolution, while in H2SO4 the main reaction is the formation of H2S2O8. In both electrolytes small amounts of O-3 and H2O2 are formed. Finally, a simplified mechanism involving hydroxyl radicals formed by water discharge has been proposed for water oxidation on boron-doped diamond anodes.