Electroanalysis with Carbon Paste Electrodes: A Look Behind the Scientific-Research Activities of the Electroanalytical Group in Pardubice

This contribution is dedicated to Prof. RNDr. Jiří Barek, CSc. on the occasion of his 75ᵗʰ birthday

Abstract

In this article, a retrospective view of the research activities of the electroanalytical group at the University in Pardubice (UPCE) is presented, offering a concise overview on the development, continuing work, and significant achievements in electrochemical measurements with carbon paste electrodes (CPEs). At the very beginning, a brief history of the field is provided and the state-of-the-art in a global view outlined. Second, research activities with CPEs and related configurations in the former Czechoslovakia and the succeeding Czech Republic are also summarised and the respective publications cited. The introductory section ends with a historical survey of the activities of the electroanalytical group at the UPCE, characterising the individual time periods with CPEs from the mid-1980s up until now and highlighting the most important achievements and the corresponding publications. The pivotal part of the text then gathers five various examples representing some of the truly key-themes that have made electroanalysis at UPCE well-known and, at the same, distinctive. Namely, overviewed, commented, and illustrated in selected figures are (i) carbon paste mixtures with atypical binders from liquid esters, (ii) extractive pre-concentration onto the carbon paste bulk and determination of iodine, (iii) method for determination of Ag(I) ions at a CPE with extraordinary analytical performance, (iv) carbon pastes as substrates for mercury, gold, bismuth, and antimony films, and (v) recent applications of CPEs prepared from carbonaceous materials of natural origin.