Recent advances in pulsed electrochemical techniques: Synthesis of electrode materials and electrocatalytic reactions

The eager expectation to address the current serious energy and environmental crisis drives researchers to explore advanced technologies to achieve a carbon-free and sustainable society. Pulsed electrochemical technique has emerged as a convenient and powerful tool for material processing and dynamic manipulation of electrochemical reactions at solid–liquid interfaces. This review summarizes the application of pulsed techniques in the electrodeposition synthesis of electrode materials and dynamic regulation of various electrocatalytic reactions. The critical indicators for pulsed electrochemical techniques are first introduced. Subsequently, pulsed electrodeposition method used for the fabrication of electrode materials is described, with a focus on various pulse parameters and mechanisms that influence the composition, morphology and thickness of the deposits. Further, recent breakthroughs in pulse-driven electrocatalysis including electrochemical reduction of small molecules (N2, O2 and CO2), electrochemical oxidation of water contaminants and electrocatalytic valorization along with water splitting, are reviewed. The advantages of pulse-driven dynamic process over conventional potentiostatic method in regulating the mass transfer and diffusion of reactant/intermediate species to improve the electrocatalytic performance are highlighted. Finally, the current challenges and opportunities of pulsed electrochemical techniques for materials synthesis and applications in energy conversions are critically discussed.