The chemical history of a current

Abstract

The electric current was born two centuries ago, and its precise nature is still being elucidated. Various lines of investigation have been pursued. The discovery of electrolysis in 1800 was followed in 1834 by Faraday's laws, and led to the realization that there is a fundamental particle of electricity. In the 1840s, Joule's studies on batteries and electric motors led him to the formulation of the principle of conservation of energy. Clerk Maxwell's theory of electromagnetic radiation owed much to measurements of the speed of an electric current in a good conductor. The existence of ions in solution was not accepted until late in the century, and has led to a much deeper understanding in the whole field of electrochemistry. The electrode processes that occur in a galvanic cell and in electrolysis usually control the rate with which the current flows, and the mechanisms of such processes have presented a great challenge to research workers. Brian Conway has made important contributions to the understanding of electrode processes, and to related electrochemical problems, over a period of more than 40 years. Keywords: electric current, electrochemistry, electrode processes.