Abstract: In this paper, the sintered Ti anodes (STA) with Ti suboxide intermediate layers and β-MnO_2 active layers were investigated in detail. At usual industrial current densities, the oxygen evolution overpotential on STA is reduced by 350 mV compared with lead anodes. According to the equation obtained experimentally, the service life of STA may be expected to be more than 3 years. After los- ing activity, STA may be recoated with β-MnO_2 active layers and used again. The electrocatalytic activity and the service life of the reused anodes remained almost unchanged. The possible reasons for losing activity of STA during the anodic evolution of oxygen were investigated by means of elec- tron probe microanalysis, electron scanning microscope and X-ray diffraction.

Key words: sintered titanium anode, electrocatalytic anode, electrowinning