It may on first consideration seem implausible that monolithic titanium dioxide ceramic, well-known as an electrical insulator/dielectric material, could ever be transformed into an electrically conductive material, with a potential application as a commercial electrode to rank alongside existing materials such as graphite, magnetite, silicon iron and the family of noble metal/oxide-coated titanium anodes. Yet this is now the case, and what follows is a first-hand account of its inception in an industrial metallurgical laboratory, and the successes and failures, as those involved, guided largely by intuition, backed with empirical trials, felt their way towards a useful and totally novel material.
