Electrochemical behavior of phthaloyl peroxide in aqueous media

The electrochemical behavior of phthaloyl peroxide C8H4O4 on an Au disk electrode in a 0.05 M aqueous solution of Na2SO4 was studied by cyclic voltammetry (CVA). It demonstrated a high activity in cathodic reduction with the formation of an irreversible peak on the CVA curve at E =–0.81 V. Additionally, during the anodic oxidation of C8H4O4, the surface of the Au electrode became passivated by compounds which prevented its oxidation during the registration of repeated cycles. Apparently, these compounds are surface complexes of phthaloyl peroxide with a gold cation.