Evaluation of organic battery electrodes: Voltammetric study of the redox behaviour of solid quinones

The redox behaviour of solid quinones has been examined by potential sweep and cyclic voltammetry. A number of quinones are insoluble in aqueous electrolytes and can be completely discharged and recharged without appreciable polarization, as found, for example, with solid chloranil (tetrachloro-p-benzoquinone) and solid duroquinone (tetramethyl-p-benzoquinone). Hence quinones are reversible redox systems not only in solutions but also in the solid state. During discharge and recharge in dilute sulphuric acid only slight polarization occurs, which is attributed to a pure diffusion overvoltage. Polarization is not much greater in salt solutions. In this case, however, the peaks of the voltammetric curves are broader. In ammonium chloride solutions a double peak corresponding to the two electron transfers is obtained for chloranil both anodically and cathodically; this shows that the semiquinone is stable in ammonium chloride solution. Duroquinone also gives two peaks, but these are observed only in non-stationary measurements so that they do not correspond to the state of equilibrium. The pH dependence of the redox potential is 59 mV per pH unit. Only chloranil in ammonium chloride solution shows two redox potentials, depending on the discharge depth, which are both lower than the potential corresponding to the pH. The possible application of quinones in secondary battery cathodes is discussed.