Synthesis, characterization and electrochemical study of layered double hydroxides intercalated with 2-thiophenecarboxylate anions Original Research Article

The synthesis, characterization, and electrochemical study of the Zn(II)–Al(III) and Zn(II)–Cr(III) Layered Double Hydroxides (LDHs) containing 2-thiopenecarboxylate as the interlayer anions are described. The LDHs were prepared by the constant pH coprecipitation technique followed by hydrothermal treatment for 72 h. The materials were analyzed by PXRD, FT-IR, 13C CP-MAS, EDX, TEM, and CV. The presence of the organic heterocyclic anions was confirmed by FT-IR and the related solid-state 13C NMR data strongly suggested that these were dimerised during coprecipitation. Accordingly, the basal spacing found by the X-ray technique was ∼15.3 Å, a distance coincident with the formation of bilayers of the intercalated anions. The structural organization of all the new materials was greatly enhanced by hydrothermal treatment, as shown by PXRD. The improved organization of the bilayered structures had a strong influence in the electrochemical behaviour of clay-modified electrodes produced with these materials, such as the diminished resistance to the ionic flow through the LDHs films.