GalvaPot, a custom-made combination galvanostat/potentiostat and high impedance potentiometer for decentralized measurements of ionophore-based electrodes

To characterize the electronic performance of the instrument, three different electrochemical protocols were used with ionophore based electrodes and compared with a commercial work station: (1) open circuit potentiometric measurements with calcium ion-selective membranes; (2) chronoamperometry based on three successive pulses with simultaneous control of fluidic delivery by a peristaltic pump and switching valve, followed by on board current integration to obtain a coulometric readout; (3) a chronopotentiometric protocol using protamine selective membranes with current pulses of 5-s duration, including an automatic computation of the time-derivative to find the transition time as the analytical signal. At 500 g, the instrument is portable yet sufficiently versatile for performing and analyzing most electrochemical measurements without the need for an external computer. It may become an attractive tool for applications in environmental and clinical analysis where field portability, flexibility and integration are desired.