In this study, different types of Pt- and PtRu-based electrodes were compared regarding their activity and stability for methanol oxidation in an acid zinc sulfate solution. The lead anodes used in zinc electrowinning today are not dimensionally stable and have a high overvoltage for oxygen evolution. By replacing the oxygen evolution in sulfate-based electrolytes with methanol oxidation, the anode potential could be significantly lowered. This would reduce the energy consumption and also enable the use of new and more stable types of electrodes. The activities of the electrodes studied were found sufficient for electrowinning. The highest activity was obtained with porous PtRu, while platinized titanium was the most stable electrode. All electrodes were deactivated with time, and the deactivation rate of PtRu was influenced by mass transport. The dominating reaction mechanism seemed to be different on Pt and on PtRu. Due to deactivation of the electrodes with time, a reactivation method was needed. The best method tested in this study was to periodically reverse the current. After assessing the electrodes with respect to important properties, the platinized titanium electrode was considered to be most suitable for use in electrowinning processes. (c) 2005 The Electrochemical Society.