Differences in the electrochemical behavior of Vulcan XC-72 carbon black and glassy carbon after prolonged potential cycling

[Display omitted] •The electrochemical behavior of carbon black and glassy carbon was studied.•Electrochemical cycling affects the characteristics of carbon materials differently.•The surface area of carbon black increases unlike the surface area of glassy carbon.•OER currents on carbon black are greater than OER currents on glassy carbon.•The differences between carbon black and glassy carbon need to be taken into account. The electrochemical characteristics of a carbon carrier play an important role in catalyst investigations. The evolution of the electrochemical characteristics of Vulcan XC-72 carbon black and a glassy carbon disk electrode was studied under prolonged electrochemical action. The electrochemical action was performed by repeated application of a sawtooth periodic potential to the electrodes in the range from 0.05 to 1 V vs. RHE and back at a scan rate of 50 mV/s. The EDL charging current, the cyclic current–voltage curves, the equilibrium electrode potential, and the dissolved oxygen reduction current in potentiostatic mode at 0.05 V vs. RHE were recorded periodically. Carbon black was characterized by helium pycnometry, SEM, TEM, X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy. The currents on the carbon black were several orders of magnitude higher than those on the glassy carbon. The differences in the dynamics of electrochemical characteristics are discussed.