A two-step procedure was used for the preparation of titanium substrates for noble metal coated electrodes: mechanical polishing followed by electropolishing in a methano/butanol/perchloric acid mixture. Thus, the electrodes were subject to anodisation. Very reproducible Ti/TiO2 substrates were obtained. Their properties were studied by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The cathodoluminescence spectra indicated that the surfaces were very homogeneous. The deposition of platinum was carried out by reduction of a platinum complex in solution, and led to nuclei randomly scattered on the whole surface. The behaviour of the resulting electrodes was compared to that of a platinum electrode. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.