HeAD OF LABORATORY: Professor Ionel Cătălin POPESCU

Phone: +40-264-59.58.72

Fax: +40-264-59.08.18

E-mail: cpopescu@chem.ubbcluj.ro

Laboratory of electrochemical research

part of the

EXCELLENCY CENTER IN ELECTROCHEMISTRY (CNCSIS 6/CC-B/2001)

Adress Laboratorul de Cercetări în Electrochimie

Facultatea de Chimie şi Inginerie Chimică

Str. Arany Janos 11, RO-400028 Cluj-Napoca

ROMANIA

Staff

Professor	Ionel Cătălin Popescu	cpopescu@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Professor	Liana Maria Mureşan	limur@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Assoc. Prof.	Petru Ilea	pilea@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Senior Researcher II	Virginia Danciu	vdanciu@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Senior Researcher III	Veronica Coşoveanu	vcosov@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Assist. Prof. Engineer	Adrian Nicoară	anicoara@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Assist. Prof. Engineer	Graziella Turdean	gturdean@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Assist. Prof.	Sorin Dorneanu	dorneanu@chem.ubbcluj.ro
Assist. Prof.	Delia Gligor	ddicu@chem.ubbcluj.ro
PhD student	Ioana Ladiu	iladiu@chem.ubbcluj.ro
PhD student	Cosmin Coteţ	cotetcosmin@yahoo.com
PhD student	Izabel Peter	ipeter@L30.itim-cj.ro
PhD student	Anca Peter	peteranca@yahoo.com
PhD student	Vasile Coman	vcoman@chem.ubbcluj.ro
PhD student	Laura Mureşan	lamur@chem.ubbcluj.ro

Research topics

(1) Electrode materials for electrochemical sensors/biosensors

(i) Obtaining and characterization of non-conventional electrode materials, exhibiting electrocatalytic activity and selective recognition properties, for sensors or biosensors construction.

(ii) Electrochemical nanostructures prepared by self-assembling (on Au), electropolymerization (on carbonaceous materials) and adsorbtion (on conventional electrode materials)

(iii) C aerogels prepared by sol-gel method and supercritical drying

(iv) Composite materials based on polymeric matrices containing zeolites, carbon or TiO₂ aerogel, noble metal particles and redox mediators

(v) Electroactive bicomposites incorporating enzymes, cofactors and mediators

(2) Theoretical and practical aspects of metal electrodeposition

(i) Investigation of the electrodeposition mechanism of some metals of practical importance (Cu, Zn, Pb, Mn) using modern electrochemical techniques (electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, chronoamperometry, hydrodynamic voltammetry etc.)

(ii) Theoretical and practical aspects of electrowinning, electrorefining and electroplating of metals

(3) Inorganic and organic electrosynthesis

Study of fundamental and practical aspects related to the obtaining of some compounds used in environmental protection (H₂O₂) and other fields (aromatic diamino and aminopiperasine derivatives)

(4) Photo(electro)catalysis

(i) Photodegradation of organic pollutants on high surface catalysts (titanium dioxide aerogels)

(ii) Photodegradation of organic compounds on semiconducting oxides thin films (TiO₂)

Scientific collaborations

· Laboratoire d’Electrochimie et Photochimie Redox, “Joseph Fourier” University, Grenoble, France

· Laboratoire d’Electrochimie et Phisiochimie des Materiaux et Interfaces, Institut National Polytechnique, Grenoble, France

· Laboratoire Interfaces et Systemes Electrochimiquee, “Pierre et Marie Curie” University, Paris, France

· Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Lund, Sweden

· Department of Analytical Chemistry, University Alcala de Henares, Spain

· Department of Physical Chemistry, University “Eotvos Lorand” Budapest, Hungary

· Department of Chemistry, University “Tor Vergata”, Roma, Italia

· Department of Physics, Brooklyn College of CUNY, New York, USA

Publications

(1) Electrode materials for electrochemical sensors/biosensors

1. D. Dicu, L. Muresan, I. C. Popescu, C. Cristea, I. A. Silberg, P. Brouant, ”Modified Electrodes with New Phenothiazine Derivatives for Electrocatalytic Oxidation of NADH”, Electrochim. Acta, 2000, 45, 3951.

2. A. Narváez, G. Suárez, I. C. Popescu, I. Katakis, E. Domínguez, „Reagentless Biosensors Based on Self-Deposited Redox Polyelectrolyte-Oxydoreductases Architectures”, Biosens. Bioelectron., 2000, 15, 43.

3. G. Turdean, I. C. Popescu, L. Oniciu, D. R. Thevenot, „Sensitive detection of organophosphorus pesticides using a needle type amperometric acetylcholinesterase-based bioelectrode. Thiocholine electrochemistry and immobilised enzyme inhibition”, J. Enz. Inhib., 2002, 17, 107.

4. G. L. Turdean, Antonella Curulli, I. C. Popescu, C. Rosu, G. Palleschi, „Electropolymerized architecture entrapping a trilacunary Keggin-type polyoxometalate for assembling a glucose biosensor”, Electroanalysis, 2002, 14, 1550.

5. V. Rosca, I. C. Popescu, Kinetic Analysis of Horseradish Peroxidase „Wiring” in Redox Polyelectrolyte-Peroxidase Multilayer Assemblies, Electrochem. Commun., 2002, 4, 904.

6. F. D. Munteanu, D. Dicu, I. C. Popescu, L. Gorton, „NADH Oxidation using carbonaceous electrodes modified with dibenzo-dithia-diazapentacene”, Electroanalysis, 2003, 15, 383.

7. D. Dicu, F. D. Munteanu, I. C. Popescu, L. Gorton, „Indophenol and O-quinone Derivatives Immobilised on Zirconium Phosphate for NADH Electro-oxidation”, Anal. Lett., 2003, 36, 1755

8. Virginia Danciu, L. C. Coteţ, Veronica Coşoveanu, P. Marginean, “Prepararation and porous structure determination of resorcinol-formaldehyde and carbon aerogels” Stud. Univ. “Babes-Bolyai”, Chem., 2003, XLVIII, 2, 185

(2) Theoretical and practical aspects of metal electrodeposition

1. L. Oniciu, L. Muresan, „Some fundamental aspects of levelling and brightening in metal electrodeposition”, J. Appl . Electrochem., 1991, 21, 565.

2. P. Ilea, I. C. Popescu, M. Urda, L. Oniciu, „Electrodeposition of Manganese from Aqueous Solutions of MnSO₄. IV. Electrowinning by Galvanostatic Electrolysis”, Hydrometallurgy, 1997, 46, 149.

3. L. Muresan, A. Nicoara, G. Maurin, S. Varvara, „Influence of Zn²⁺ ions on copper electrowinning from sulphate electrolytes”, J. Appl. Electrochem., 1999, 29, 719.

4. S. Varvara, L. Mureşan, A. Nicoară, G. Maurin, I. C. Popescu, „Kinetic and morphological investigation of copper electrodeposition from sulfate electrolytes in the presence of an additive based on ethoxyacetic alcohol and triethyl-benzyl-ammonium chloride”, Mater. Chem. Phys., 2001, 72, 332.

5. V. Danciu, V. Cosoveanu, E. Grünwald, G. Oprea, „Some additives influence on zinc electrodeposition from weak-acid electrolytes”, Galvanotechink, 2003, 3, 566.

6. S. Varvara, L. Muresan, I. C. Popescu, G. Maurin, „Kinetics of Copper Electrodeposition in the Presence of Triethyl-Benzyl Ammonium Chloride”, J. Appl. Electrochem., 2003, 33, 685.

(3) Inorganic and organic electrosynthesis

1. S. Cosnier and I. C. Popescu, „Poly(amphiphilic pyrrole)-Tyrosinase-Peroxidase Electrode for Amplified Flow Injection-Amperometric Detection of Phenol”, Anal. Chim. Acta, 1996, 319, 145.

2. A-M. Martre, G. Mousset, V. Danciu, V. Coşoveanu “Indirect reduction of carbonyl and dinitro derivatives by an electrogenerated titanium (III) complex in

non aqueous medium”, Electrochim. Acta, 1998, 43, 3217.

3. P. Ilea, S. Dorneanu, I. C. Popescu, „Electrosynthesis of hydrogen peroxide by partial reduction of oxygen in alkaline media. Part II: Wall-jet ring disk electrode for electroreduction of dissolved oxygen on graphite and glassy carbon”, J. Appl. Electrochem., 2000, 30, 187.

4. L. David, C. Craciun, M. Rusu, O. Cozar, P. Ilea, D. Rusu, „Spectroscopic and electrochemical investigations of K₈[P₂VmoW₁₆O₆₂]·31H₂O heteropolyoxometalate”, Polyhedron, 2000, 19, 1917.

5. V. Rosca, L. Muresan, I. C. Popescu, I. Al. Silberg, „Gold electrodes modified with 16H, 16H dibenzo(c,l)-7,9,dithia-16,18-diazapentacene for electrocatalytic oxydation of NADH”, Electrochem. Commun., 2001, 3, 439.

6. S. A. Dorneanu, I. C. Popescu and P. Fabry, „NASICON membrane used as Na⁺-selective potentiometric sensor in steady state and transient hydrodynamic conditions”, Sens. & Actuators, B, 2003, 91, 67.

7. A. Nicoară, A. Pătruţ, D. Mărgineanu, A. Muller, Electrochemical investigation of molecular growth of the {Mo57V6} polyoxometalate cluster, Electrochem. Commun., 2003, 5, 511.

(4) Photo(electro)catalysis

1. I. C. Ladiu, V. Danciu, V. Cosoveanu, P. Lianos, “Pure and doped mesoporous TiO₂ films made from reverse micelles and their use for photocatalytic

degradation of adsorbed basic blue dye”, Stud. Univ. “Babes-Bolyai”, Chem., 2001, 46, 233.

2. C. Ladiu, V. Danciu, V. Cosoveanu, P. Lianos, “Photodegradation of Basic Blue 45 dye on undoped and doped TiO₂ films”, Rev. Roum. Chim., 2002, 47,

789.

3. V. Danciu, V. Coşoveanu, A. Peter, I. Marian, P.Marginean, E. Indrea, “TiO₂-aerogels morphology-synthesis correlation” Annals of West University of

Timisoara, Series Chemistry, 2003, 12, 1029.

Research equipment

Computer controlled potentiostat (AUTOLAB 10, ECHOCHEMIE, The Netherlands)

Computer controlled flow injection setup

Rotating disk electrode and rotating ring disk electrode (RADIOMETER, Denmark, 10000 rpm)

Computer controlled electrochemical quartz microbalance

Computer controlled electrochemical impedance spectroscopy setup

Electrochemical reactor with plan-parallel electrodes

Supercritical point dryer SAMDRI-PVT-3D (TOUSIMIS, USA)

UV photodegradation installation