Unit 2: Matter and PART III:

ELECTROCHEMICAL
Energy ENERGY
 Electrochemistry is the area of
chemistry that deals with the
conversion of electrical energy and
chemical energy.
Electrochemistry
It deals with the chemical changes
produced by electric current and
with the production of electricity by
chemical reactions.

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Important concepts:

• All electrochemical reactions involves the transfer of electrons and are

therefore oxidation-reduction reactions.

• The sites of oxidation and reduction are separated physically so that

oxidation occurs at one location, and reduction at the other.

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Important concepts:

• Electrochemical processes require some method of introducing a stream

of electrons into a reacting chemical system and some means of
withdrawing electrons.

• In most applications the reacting system is contained in a cell, and an

electric current enters or exits by electrodes.

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2 types of electrochemical cells

• Electrolytic cells
-are those in which electrical energy from an external source causes
nonspontaneous chemical reactions to occur

• Voltaic cells
-are those in which spontaneous chemical reactions produce electricity
and supply it to an external circuit

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Important concept:

• A cell in which all reactants and products are in their standard states (1M
for dissolved species and 1 atm partial pressure for gases) is called a
standard cell.

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Standard Reduction Potential, E°

• The voltage associated with a reduction reaction at an electrode when

all solutes are 1 M and all gases are at 1 atm.

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Standard Hydrogen Electrode

• the standard reduction potential of the hydrogen electrode is defined as

zero

• The hydrogen electrode is called the standard hydrogen electrode

(SHE)

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Standard Hydrogen Electrode

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• By convention, the standard emf of the cell, E°cell, which is composed of
a contribution from the anode and a contribution from the cathode, is
given by

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Presentation Title