A new technique is presented which allows the gaseous and volatile products of electrochemical reactions to be measured quantitatively and with high sensitivity. The equipment consists of the electrochemical cell, the membrane inlet system and the mass spectrometer. Products being formed at the porous working electrode are sucked through the porous membrane into the ion source of the mass spectrometer. The mass intensity detected is proportional to the corresponding faradaic current. A rate of formation of 5 · 10−11 mol s−1 can well be measured. The rise time of the mass intensity is short enough to allow it to be quantitatively correlated to the faradaic current even at variing electrode potential. This is utilized in mass spectroscopic cyclic voltammetry. The feasibility of the method is described.
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