Current electrochemical processes are used for a range of applications including chemical synthesis, analytical chemistry, fuel generation, electricity production, and more. However, these systems are generally operated at ambient conditions. This contrasts with traditional thermochemical systems which rarely rely only on an elevated temperature or pressure. Often, multiple driving forces are used in conjunction to tune the thermodynamics, kinetics, mass transport, and phase of chemical processes. In this presentation, we start by exploring the question of what temperatures traditional thermochemical processes use and why? Do they use elevated temperatures for improved thermodynamic driving force, kinetic benefits, or another reason entirely? We will then analyse the Butler-Volmer equation for a variety or reactions and discuss how temperature can benefit or hinder electrochemical reactions depending on the thermodynamics and kinetics of the specific reaction. We will present specific cases where temperature is useful and, equally important, where it is not useful, noting that most electrochemical reactions benefit from temperature up to a few hundred degrees Celsius. We will finish with a discussion of the practical application of temperature to electrochemical reactions in ionic liquids, showing how temperature can improve reaction rates for hydrogenation reactions as well as enable us to extract fundamental parameters about the reaction. This approach of combining thermal and electrochemical reactions provides a new dimension to electrochemical system design and results in the opportunity to further probe chemical reactions at electrochemical interfaces.
