ABSTRACT
Elemental carbon is usually handled in three forms: graphite, diamond, and amorphous carbon. For electrochemical applications, such materials can be manufactured in bars, powders, and fibers or even form conducting composites using appropriate binders. Recently, a lot of new carbon materials have been introduced in the electrochemistry world—from boron-doped diamond electrodes to fullerenes; from carbon black, porous carbons, and carbon fiber electrodes to carbon nanotubes. Activation of carbon electrodes via mechanical, thermal, chemical, and electrochemical treatments not only implies the redistribution of active sites but also the generation of surface functionalities. Among others, adsorption, deposition, covalent attachment, in-site functionalization of self-assembled monolayers, and electropolymerization strategies have been reported for the modification of carbon electrode surfaces. Carbon nanotubes and nanoribbons are nanostructured materials having a common fiber-type structure. Polymers of fullerenes with transition metal complexes exhibit electrochemical activity due to the reduction of fullerene moieties.
