F-centre luminescence from oxide-covered aluminium cathode induced by two-step reduction of peroxydisulfate anions

Light emission from aluminium oxide during cathodic pulse-polarisation of oxide-covered aluminium in aqueous solution was observed to be strongly enhanced in the presence of peroxydisulfate ions. The spectrum of the light emission had a broad maximum between 400 and 450 nm being attributed to F-centre luminescence of aluminium oxide. The mechanism of the luminescence is associated with the two-step reduction of peroxydisulfate anions near the oxide-covered cathode where the first one-electronic reduction step occurs either (i) by tunnel-emission generated hydrated electrons or (ii) by trickling down the surface states to the energy level of peroxydisulfate ion or (iii) by direct heterogeneous electron transfer from the bottom of the aluminium oxide conduction band to peroxydisulfate ions during strong downward band bending induced by cathodic pulse-polarisation. The second step occurs by electrons from F- or F+-centres at the oxide/electrolyte interface. Transitions of aluminium oxide conduction band electrons to fill the sulfate radical-emptied electron trapping sites (oxygen vacancies) produces analogous F- and F+-centre luminescence to that occurring during photoluminescence and thermoluminescence of aluminium oxide. No enhancement of light emission was observed in the presence of hydrogen peroxide which is also reduced in a two-step process at oxide-covered aluminium electrode. This can be explained by the fact that the energy level of hydroxyl radical under the present conditions lies ca. 1 eV above, whereas the energy level of sulfate radical lies somewhat below the colour-centre sub-band of aluminium oxide. Therefore, the sulfate radical is a sufficiently strong oxidant but the hydroxyl radical is too weak an oxidant to abstract electrons from F- and F+-centres.