Industrial Electrochemistry

The objective of this second edition remains the discussion of the many diverse roles of electrochemical technology in industry. Throughout the book, the intention is to emphasize that the applications, though extremely diverse, all are on the same principles of electrochemistry and electrochemical engineer based ing. Those familiar with the first edition will note a significant increase in the number of pages. The most obvious addition is the separate chapter on electrochemical sensors but, in fact, all chapters have been reviewed thoroughly and many have been altered substantially. These changes to the book partly reflect the different view of a second author as well as comments from students and friends. Also, they arise inevitably from the vitality and strength of electrochemical technology; in addition to important improvements in tech nology, new electrolytic processes and electrochemical devices continue to be reported. In the preface to the first edition it was stated: . . . the future for electrochemical technology is bright and there is a general expectation that new applications of electrochemistry will become economic as the world responds to the challenge of more expensive energy, of the need to develop new materials and to exploit different chemical feedstocks and of the necessity to protect the environment. The preparation of this second edition, seven years after these words were written, provided an occasion to review the progress of industrial electro chemistry.

Electrochemistry is clearly an important component of the technology of many quite diverseindustries. Moreover, the future for electrochemical technology is bright and there is a general expectation that new applications of electrochemistry will become economic as the world responds to the challenge of more expensive energy, of the need to develop new materials and to exploit different chemical feedstocks and of the necessity to protect the environment. " Inthis situation, the present rather fragmentary state ofelectrochemical technology is disappointing. Whilethere are many similarities in the underlying principles and even the practices of the electrochemically based industries, they are often not fully appreciated. Certainly, the Rand D programmes in many industries are in the hands of those with little formal training and whose experience of and interest in other branches of electrochemistry is very limited. Moreover, the academic world has done little to help. Electrode processes are, too often, totally ignored in courses to both scientists and engineers and certainly electrochemical technology is almost never taught as a unified subject with an appropriate balance between fundamentals, engineering and applications. Overall, it isnot surprising that the various strands have not interwoven and that scientists and engineers do not have a proper appreciation of the importance of electrochemical technology. Inthe first half of 1979 I conducted a survey into the research and development needs of the various industries in Britain using electrochemical technology.

The papers included in this issue of ECS Transactions were originally presented in the symposium ¿Electrodes for Industrial Electrochemistry¿, held during the PRiME 2008 joint international meeting of The Electrochemical Society and The Electrochemical Society of Japan, with the technical cosponsorship of the Japan Society of Applied Physics, the Korean Electrochemical Society, the Electrochemistry Division of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, and the Chinese Society of Electrochemistry. This meeting was held in Honolulu, Hawaii, from October 12 to 17, 2008.

The papers included in this issue of ECS Transactions were originally presented in the symposia ¿Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering General Session¿, held during the 215th meeting of The Electrochemical Society, in San Francisco, CA from May 24 to 29, 2009.