Abstract:

The following work aims to bridge a gap of knowledge for professionals of conservation science on electrochemical-heavy background. Ideally this would lead to a competence of use of the tools that electrochemistry offers and to understand the data it's generated by.

Justification: It's well-known that decay in most cultural heritage goods is closely related to corrosion processes, that only reason should be enough to justify the need of being a sort of electrochemistry connoisseur for a professional in the pursuit of preserving cultural heritage for the future.

In addition there is a plethora of reasons for learning this topic: Electrochemistry based devices cost only a fraction than other equipments, and they achieve exceptionally low detection limits etc., to name only a few.

Although everything said before electrochemistry is regarded as a tough subject, even for seasoned chemistry students. Not denying the fact this topic incurs in the use of complex maths and high abstractions, there is also and "emotional" barrier, sometimes higher than the intellectual one.

We propose a set of learning and teaching methodologies, based in our experience in the teaching of this topics to students of a chemist-related Master degree that came from heterogeneus studies, that open nature prevented any assumption of prior knowledge of electrochemistry. Those methodologies involve theoretical classes paired with subsequent experiment-oriented sessions were students can observe, firsthand, what has been explained in theory, both simulated (via software) and in actual laboratory.

Keywords:

Chemistry, electrochemistry, higher-education.