Quinone electrochemistry for the comparative assessment of sp² surface content of boron doped diamond electrodes

Surface coverage measurements of electroactive quinone groups present on sp2 carbon sites, are used to inform on the sp2 surface content of boron doped diamond (BDD) electrodes. Laser micromachining of an electrode surface is used to systematically increase the amount of sp2 carbon present by increasing the area machined. A linear relationship between quinone surface coverage and surface area lasered is determined (R2 = 0.9999). This approach can also be used for comparative assessment of electrodes containing different amounts of surface sp2 carbon