Impedimetric Thiourea Sensing in Copper Electrorefining Bath based on DC Magnetron Sputtered Nanosilver as Highly Uniform Transducer

Highlights: • Fabrication of a novel disposable impedimetric thiourea sensor based on nanostructured Ag film transducer. • Exploiting sputtering as a high-tech method for preparation of highly uniform nanostructured Ag film. • A wonderful combination of nanostructured Ag film and carbon paper substrate as remarkably stable and reproducible sensor for thiourea detection in copper electrorefining bath. • Application of impedimetric assessment for thiourea monitoring due to its rapidity, sensitivity, and repeatability. - Abstract: Highly uniform sputtered nanostructured silver (Nano-Ag) film on the conductive carbon paper (CP) substrate (Nano-Ag/CP) was applied as a novel approach for thiourea (TU) measurement in copper electrorefining bath. Nano-Ag film was achieved by direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering system at the optimized instrumental deposition conditions. Characterization of the surface structure of Nano-Ag film by field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), exhibits uniform Nano-Ag film as an effective transducer for TU sensing. Step by step monitoring of Nano-Ag/CP electrode fabrication were performed using electrochemical methods such as cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. Fabricated Nano-Ag/CP electrode was used for TU determination using EIS assessment. The impedimetric results show high sensitivity for TU sensing within 2.0–250 ppm.