Comparison of voltammetric data obtained for the trans-[Mn(CN)(CO)2[P(OPh)3](Ph2PCH2PPh2)]0/+ process in BMIM.PF6...

Conventional cyclic voltammetric studies on the oxidation of millimolar concentrations (mg masses) of trans-[Mn(CN)(CO)(2)[P(OPh)(3)](Ph(2)PCH(2)PPh(2))] (trans-Mn) dissolved in milliliter volumes of bulk ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIM.PF(6)), give rise to a reversible [trans-Mn](0/+) process. In this study, it is shown that equally well-defined reversible voltammetry can be more economically obtained under microchemical ionic liquid conditions by employing a chemically modified electrode (microg quantities of trans-Mn adhered to a glassy carbon electrode covered with microliter volumes of water-immiscible BMIM.PF(6)) in contact with aqueous (0.1 M KPF(6)) electrolyte. The ability to obtain electrochemical data that are directly relatable to bulk ionic liquid media under these microchemical conditions is principally associated with the dissolution of electrogenerated solid [trans-Mn](+) in the layer of water-immiscible BMIM.PF(6) present at the electrode/ionic liquid/aqueous electrolyte interface. If the BMIM.PF(6) layer is sufficiently thick, mass transport of the dissolved species is governed by semi-infinite linear diffusion. Under these conditions, the voltammetric waveshape and position, but not the current magnitude are the same as those found when conventional bulk ionic liquid conditions are employed. In contrast, use of very thin layers produces voltammograms that exhibit the characteristics expected for a reversible process in which the mass transport process is predominantly governed by finite rather than semi-infinite diffusion. A theoretical model has been developed that describes the transformation from thick- to thin-layer type behavior as the thickness of the ionic liquid layer is decreased.