A broad frequency range dielectric spectrometer for colloidal suspensions: cell design, calibration, and validation

Electrode polarization complicates low-frequency measurements of the dielectric response of electrolyte solutions and colloidal suspensions. To deal with this longstanding problem, a new dielectric cell was developed along with a model based on the standard electrokinetic theory. The parallel plate cell utilizes a thin chamber that is easily filled and emptied; different chamber thicknesses are readily accommodated. The analytical form of the theoretical impedance model makes data analysis straightforward. Using standard electrolytes, the device and the theoretical model were tested over a wide range of frequencies for several electrolyte concentrations. Excellent agreement was found between the theory and the experimental data. The methodology developed to account for polarization effects exhibits a significant improvement over the conventional approaches and points up a deficiency in often-used equivalent circuit models.