| Research in the field of ion and electron conducting materials is an exciting area due to the possibility of the creation of new sensors, energy conversion devices, and lightweight polymer electronics. These conducting materials are the subject of the work described in this manuscript.; The primary objectives of the first portion of this work deal with the characterization of the electrochemical reduction of oxygen at the Pt-perfluorosulfonate ionomer interface. These ionomers were studied as possible coatings for fuel cell Pt catalysts. The PFSI coatings characterized in these studies were du Pont's Nafion and a series of ionomers of different equivalent weight provided by Dow Chemical. We did indeed find that PFSI coatings on Pt electrodes enhance the rate of oxygen reduction as compared to bare electrodes in phosphoric acid solutions.; The second portion of this work deals with characterization of a newly discovered property of free-standing electron conducting polymers (ECP). That is, the ability of an ECP membrane to catalyze electron transfer reactions between reactant solutions separated by the membrane. In this case, polypyrrole, a unique conducting polyheterocycle, was chemically polymerized in a porous support membrane. The conducting membrane serves to allow for the conduction of electrons across the membrane when the reactants are placed on opposite sides. Electron transfer between the reactive solutions proceeds, however, due to ability of the membrane to transfer ions and maintain charge neutrality. In addition to proving the existence of the ability of these membranes to promote electron transfer using simple inorganic reactions, we show that this system can also catalyze the reaction of biological systems.; The last portion of this work presents the synthesis of a new conducting C{dollar}sb{lcub}60{rcub}{dollar} complex made via electrodeposition of a fullerene containing salt. This electrodeposition was accomplished by electrochemically reducing C{dollar}sb{lcub}60{rcub}{dollar} in the presence of Ru(bpy){dollar}sb3sp{lcub}2+{rcub}{dollar}. In addition, spectrochemical investigations of the electrochemically generated C{dollar}sb{lcub}60{rcub}{dollar} and C{dollar}sb{lcub}70{rcub}{dollar} anionic species (1-4{dollar}sp-{dollar}) was accomplished. The unique character of the absorption spectra of the ions provides a route for characterizing the ionization state of the electrodeposited salt, a heretofore difficult process. |
