Comprehensive understanding of electro-oxidation of ethylene glycol

• We investigate the electro-oxidation of glycol ethylene.
• We study the dependence of the impedance spectroscopy on the applied potential.
• We analyze the origin of all redox peaks in cyclic voltammetries.
• We study the dependence of oscillation on the applied potential and concentration.

In the present article, a full investigation of the electrochemical characteristics of the electro-oxidation reaction of ethylene glycol on platinum (Pt) electrode in sulfuric acid has been performed to comprehensively understand and explore the details of the reaction mechanism. The dependence of the basic characteristics of the potentiostatic-mode electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) on the externally applied potentials has been studied in detail. The influence of the externally applied potentials and the ethylene glycol concentration on the galvanostatic potential's oscillation has been investigated in-depth. Finally, the origin of all oxidation/reduction peaks in the cyclic voltammetries (CV) has been discussed based on the CV and linear sweeping measurements and the reports by other groups.