Double Electric Layer on Liquid Sn-Ga Alloy in Acetonitrile Solutions of Electrolytes

The structure of the double electric layer (DEL) on a liquid dropping Sn-Ga electrode containing 8 at. % of Sn is studied in acetonitrile (AN) solutions of electrolytes. It is shown that the transition from aqueous to AN solutions of electrolytes makes it possible to expand the region of investigation of parameters of DEL on an Sn-Ga electrode from negative charges to a zero charge and to small positive charges. As follows from the obtained data, throughout the entire interval of charges studied, an excess, as compared with an Hg electrode, chemisorption interaction (Sn-Ga)-AN is absent. It is established that the distance of the closest approach of AN dipoles to an ionic core increases upon going from Hg to Sn-Ga to Ga. The Ga, Bi-Ga, and Sn-Ga electrodes, which possess close values of the “electrochemical work function,” are used as an example to show that the metal-solvent chemisorption interaction increases with decreasing distance of the closest approach of its dipoles to the ionic core of the metal. The effect of this factor becomes stronger as the donor number of the solvent increases.