What is electrochemical technology?
Electrochemical technology covers the whole range of technologies
that involve chemical processes that are driven by the application
of an electric current, or which produce an electrical potential
as a result of a chemical reaction. Some of these are familiar
processes, such as the electrolytic production of aluminum, electroplating
of metals, and the development of advanced batteries. Other applications
include the deposition of thin films of semiconductors on metals
surfaces, useful in the production of solar energy devices and
photocopying materials, and the development of sensors based on
molecules that are engineered at the molecular scale: so-called
nanotechnologies.
Many familiar analytical devices such as pH meters and oxygen
sensors already employ electrochemical principles. Among other
developments is the destruction of wastes by electrolysis, an
application that finds a niche when conventional treatment methods
fail.
Electrochemical synthesis is an area with tremendous possibilities
in the context of “green chemistry”, offering the
prospect of carrying out oxidations and reductions “with
just electrons as reagents”.
Why Guelph?
Guelph's Electrochemical Technology Centre brings together one of the greatest
concentrations of electrochemical researchers in Canada. Long
an area of intensive research in Europe and Japan, electrochemistry
has been underdeveloped in Canada. Yet the examples presented
herein show that electrochemical research can play a vital part
in promoting Canada's economic wellbeing. In Southern Ontario,
the University of Guelph is ideally located to form research partnerships
with the private and government sectors. Add to this a team of
leading researchers with significant outside funding, and the
result is a research-intensive university, with the desire to
play a leading role in fundamental and applied research in electrochemistry.
