Electrocatalysis driving force

Prospects for efficient electrocatalysis are the strongest driving force behind the development of modified electrodes. Ascorbic acid is often used to test new catalytic systems because of its overpotential, amenability to electrocatalysis, and biological importance. Plasma polymerized poly(vinylferrocene) (49) and pentachloroiridate bound to protonated plasma polymerized poly(vinylpyridine) ( ) were each shown to serve as electrocatalysts for oxidation of ascorbic acid. Several other examples of electrocatalysis are described in later sections, but these are only a small sample of work going on in this field. 

In electrocatalysis, the electromotive force supplied by the electrical power supply is the source of the energy necessary to drive an unfavorable reaction, as in electrochemical water splitting into H2 and O2. In a thermal reaction, an exothermic reaction can be coupled to an endothermic one to drive the latter to... 

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