Measuring the Double Layer Capacitance of Electrolytes with Varied Concentrations

When electric potentials are applied from an electrolytic fluid to a metal, a double layer capacitor, Cdl, develops at the interface. The layer directly at the interface is called the Stern layer and has a thickness equal to roughly the size of the ions in the fluid. The next layer, the diffuse layer, arises from the gathering of like charges in the Stern layer. This layer is the distance needed for ionic concentrations to match the bulk fluid. This distance, called the Debye length, λ, depends on the square root of the electrolyte concentration. To study the properties of the diffuse layer, we measure C using different concentrations of electrolyte solutions in a cylindrical capacitor system we machined