Electrochemistry: Energy and Environmental Applications

The development of new methodologies is a basic objective of the research in Electrochemistry; this interest is demanded by the progress in all several field of industry, and technology; thereafter, Electrochemical methods have been applied during the last years for the treatment and monitoring of wastes, as for example: the elimination of organic or metal contaminants from industrial wastes for example by direct or indirect electrochemical oxidation of pollutants, metal recycling, sensing of pollutant and reagent levels in liquid and gaseous industrial wastes with the help of electrochemical sensors and biosensors, the creation of fuel cells, the removal of metal ions by electro-deposition and the electrochemical regeneration of spent soil washing, between others. In a general sense the aim of the methods for the electrochemical treatment of wastes is the application of electron transfer processes in order to transform contaminants into less hazardous chemicals. The general methodology to make the treatment is by using two electrodes immersed (normally) in an aqueous phase, to produce oxidation or reduction reactions producing, in general, wanted reaction products.