Abstract
POLAROGRAPHIC measurement of the partial pressure of oxygen in air is usually carried out with the cell devised by Clark1 or with a similar device. In the Clark device, the cathode is embedded in a block of glass, ceramic or some other suitable electrical insulator, in such a way that it is flush with one face of the block. A membrane, usually between 5 and 50 µm thick, of rubber or of a polymer such as polythene or polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) is stretched over this face, and a thin layer of electrolyte is held between the membrane and cathode block either in the surface roughness or in paper tissue. An appropriate potential is applied to the cell and the magnitude of the electrical current depends on the rate at which oxygen diffuses through the membrane to accept electrons from the polarized cathode. This rate in turn is dependent on the partial pressure of oxygen in the atmosphere.
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References
Clark, jun., L. C., Trans. Amer. Soc. Artif. Intern. Organs, 2, 41 (1956).
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BERGMAN, I. Metallized Membrane Electrode: Atmospheric Oxygen Monitoring and other Applications. Nature 218, 266 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1038/218266a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/218266a0
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