Review—Electrochemical Phase Formation via a Supercooled Liquid State Stage: Metastable Structures and Intermediate Phases

Abstract

A review of experimental author’s works proving the existence of the phenomenon of the electrochemical phase formation in metals and alloys via a supercooled liquid state stage is presented. The research findings focused on the electrochemical formation of metastable structures and intermediate phases, as well as on the structural features accompanying them. Electrochemical amorphous phase formation in metals and alloys, electrochemical quasicrystalline phase formation in metals, and electrochemical polymorphic phase formation in metals are discussed. Electrochemical hydrogen-related structure formation in metals, electrochemical high-defect crystalline phase formation in metals, and electrochemical texture-inhomogeneous structure formation in metals are considered. Electrochemical formation of intermediate phases in metals and alloys, electrochemical formation of eutectics in metallic alloys, and electrochemical formation of chemical compounds at the metallic cathode/electrodepositing metal interface are analyzed. Electrochemical reduction of ions in metals and alloys at a liquid cathode versus a solid chemically identical one, electrochemical phase formation of metals at chemically identical solid or liquid cathode, and electrochemical phase formation of alloys at chemically identical solid or liquid cathode are discussed.