Recent advances in bipolar electrochemistry with conducting polymers

Conducting polymers have been extensively studied due to their potential applications ranging from sensing to energy storage, and environmental remediation. They can be easily generated by electrosynthesis and have also very interesting electrochemical features, which have been mostly examined with classic electrochemical approaches. Bipolar electrochemistry offers an attractive alternative way to synthesize and characterize the physico-chemical properties of conducting polymers. The wireless and asymmetric features of bipolar electrochemistry can be advantageously combined with the electroactivity, tunability and easy processability of conducting polymers. This synergy has been increasingly explored in recent years for the controlled electrogeneration, surface modification and characterization of different pi-conjugated polymers. This review summarizes the advances in this context and also discusses some unconventional applications such as wireless light-emitting devices and actuators.