Industrial Electrochemistry

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.