TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The air electrode comprises a catalyst that is manganese oxide, nickel, pyrolized cobalt, porphyrin-based catalysts, activated carbon, perovskites, spinels, silver, platinum, and/or their mixtures. The air electrode is gas permeable. The air electrode comprises a barrier membrane on an outer surface of the air electrode, and the barrier membrane is gas permeable and liquid impermeable. The air electrode repels the low temperature ionic liquid. In the electrochemical: metaloxide by-products are formed at the fuel electrode or at the air electrode. The fuel electrode is porous and metal-oxide by-products are stored at the fuel electrode. The metaloxide by-products are stored at the air electrode. The local oxide formation promoting compound comprises: a metal-containing additive, water, and/or a protic organic molecule containing additive; a metal-containing additive, where the metal of the metal-containing additive is magnesium, aluminum, manganese, gallium, or zinc; or a metal-containing additive, where the metal of the metal-containing additive is different from the metal of the fuel electrode. In the method (B), at least one of the protic ionic liquid and aprotic ionic liquid is a low temperature ionic liquid, or a room temperature ionic liquid. In the method (B), the ionically conductive medium further comprises a metal-containing additive, water, and/or a protic organic molecule containing additive. Preferred Method: In the method (A), reducing the oxygen occurs with improved oxygen reduction thermodynamics and/or kinetics, relative to electrochemical oxygen reduction in the ionic liquid without the metal-containing additive. In the method (A) and (B): the oxygen is electrochemically reduced using a catalyst; and electrochemically reducing the oxygen occurs in an electrochemical cell. In the method (A) and (B), electrochemically reducing the oxygen occurs in a metal-air ionic liquid battery comprising a metal electrode and an air electrode. In the method (A), the oxygen reduction enhancing positive-negative ion complex enhances reversibility of an air cathode of a metal-air ionic liquid battery. The method (A) further comprises: flowing the low temperature ionic liquid in a gap between a metal electrode and an air electrode; forming metal-oxide by-products at a metal fuel electrode; storing metal-oxide by-products at the metal electrode; forming metal-oxide by-product at an air electrode; and storing metal-oxide by-products at the air electrode. In the method (A), the electrochemical oxygen reduction half-reaction involves a transfer of at least two electrons per oxygen molecule. In the method (B), electrochemically reducing the oxygen occurs with improved oxygen reduction thermodynamics and/or kinetics, relative to electrochemical oxygen reduction in the ionically conductive medium without the protic ionic liquid. In the method (B), the presence of the proton enhances reversibility of an air cathode of the metal-air ionic liquid battery. The method (B) further comprises: flowing the low temperature ionic liquid in a gap between a metal electrode and an air electrode; forming metal-oxide by-products at a metal fuel electrode; storing the metal-oxide by-products at a metal electrode; and forming metal-oxide by-products at an air electrode. In the method (B), the presence of the proton produces: a shift of greater than or equal to 200 mV in the turn-on potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionically conductive medium without the at least one protic ionic liquid; an increase in the current density at the half-wave potential versus the ionically conductive medium without the at least one protic ionic liquid; and a shift of greater than or equal to 1V in the half-wave potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionic liquid without the added an oxygen reduction enhancing compound.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The oxygen reduction enhancing compound comprises: a metal-containing additive; a metal and/or water; an organic molecule containing additive; a protic organic molecule containing additive; or an additive that is at least one of triflic acid (HTf), benzonitrile:Htf, acetophenone:HTf, methanesulfonic acid, hydronium triflate, pyridazinium triflate, acetic acid, pyridinium triflate, 1,2-dimethylimidaozlium triflate, n,n-diethyl-n-methylammonium triflate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol, 2-butyl-1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidinium triflate, or water. The ionic liquid comprises at least one aprotic ionic liquid comprising at least one cation that has at least one strongly bound proton. In the electrochemical cell (I) and (IV), the oxygen reduction half-reaction involves a transfer of at least two (preferably at least four) electrons per oxygen molecule. The low temperature ionic liquid is triethylammonium methanesulfonate, 1-methyl-3-octylimidazolium tetrachlorogallate, diethylmethylammonium triflate, or 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonamide. The low temperature ionic liquid is hydrophobic. The air electrode comprises polytetrafluoroethylene. The fuel electrode is porous. The low temperature ionic liquid is aprotic. The low temperature ionic liquid comprises a room temperature ionic liquid. The low temperature ionic liquid comprises a vapor pressure at or below 1 mm mercury at 20 degrees C above its melting point. The low temperature ionic liquid comprises an anion comprising tetrachloroaluminate, bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide, methylsulfonate, nitrate, or acetate. The low temperature ionic liquid comprises a cation comprising imidazolium, sulfonium, pyrrolidinium, pyridinium, triethylammonium, diethylmethylammonium, dimethylethylammonium, ethylammonium, alpha -picolinium, 1,8-bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene, 2,6-di-tert-butylpyridine, quaternized ammonium or phosphonium. The fuel electrode further comprises a liquid impermeable backing that is further impermeable to air. The oxygen reduction enhancing positive-negative ion complexes produce a shift of greater than or equal to 200 mV in the turn-on potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionic liquid without the added oxygen reduction enhancing compound. The oxygen reduction enhancing positive-negative ion complexes produces: an increase in the current density at the half-wave potential versus the ionic liquid without the oxygen reduction enhancing compound; or a shift of greater than or equal to 1 V in the half-wave potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionic liquid without the added an oxygen reduction enhancing compound. The ionic liquid comprises a protic ionic liquid comprising at least one cation comprising at least one reversible proton. The ionic liquid comprises a protic ionic liquid comprising at least one cation comprising at least one reversible proton with a pKa less than or equal to 16, preferably less than or equal to 14. In the method (A), the oxygen reduction enhancing compound comprises: a metal-containing additive, the metal of which is magnesium, aluminum, manganese, gallium, or zinc; a metal, water, and/or an organic molecule; a protic organic molecule containing additive; or an additive that is at least one of triflic acid, benzonitrile:HTf, acetophenone: HTf, methanesulfonic acid, hydronium triflate, pyridazinium triflate, acetic acid, pyridinium triflate, 1,2-dimethylimidaozlium triflate, n,n-diethyl-n-methylammonium triflate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol, 2-butyl-1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidinium triflate, or water. In the electrochemical cell (III) and (IV), the proton improves oxygen reduction reaction thermodynamics and/or kinetics, relative to the ionically conductive medium without the at least one protic ionic liquid. In the electrochemical cell (III): at least one of the aprotic ionic liquid and the protic ionic liquid is a low temperature ionic liquid; at least one of the aprotic ionic liquid and the protic ionic liquid is a room temperature ionic liquid; the aprotic ionic liquid comprises anions chloride, hexafluorophosphate, iodide, tetrafluoroborate, bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide, trifluoromethanesulfonate, and/or their derivatives; the aprotic ionic liquid comprises cations imidazolium, sulfonium, pyirolidinium, quaternized ammonium or phosphonium, and/or their derivatives; the aprotic ionic liquid comprises at least one cation that has at least one strongly bound proton; the protic ionic liquid comprises anions tetrachloroaluminate, bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide, methylsulfonate, nitrate, acetate, and/or their derivatives; the protic ionic liquid comprises cations triethylammonium, diethylmethylammonium, dimethylethylammonium, ethylammonium, alpha -picolinium, pyridinium, 1,8-bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene, 2,6-di-tert-butylpyridine, derivatives of guanadines, and/or their derivatives; and the protic ionic liquid comprises at least one cation comprising at least one reversible proton with a pKa less than or equal to 16, preferably less than or equal to 14. In the electrochemical cell (III): at least one of the protic ionic liquid, the aprotic ionic liquid, and the ionically conductive medium is hydrophobic; and the ratio of the concentration of the protic ionic liquid to the aprotic ionic liquid is at least 1:100, preferably at least 1:1. In the electrochemical cell (III), the electrically conductive medium further comprises a metal-containing additive, water, and/or a protic organic molecule containing additive. The ionically conductive medium has a vapor pressure at or below 1 mm mercury at 20 degrees C above its melting point. n the electrochemical cell (III) and in the method (B), the presence of the proton produces: a shift of greater than or equal to 200 mV in the turn-on potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionically conductive medium without the protic ionic liquid; an increase in the current density at the half-wave potential versus the ionically conductive medium without the at least one protic ionic liquid; and a shift of greater than or equal to 1 V in the half-wave potential for oxygen reduction versus the ionic liquid without the added an oxygen reduction enhancing compound. In the method (B): the aprotic ionic liquid comprises at least one cation that has at least one strongly bound proton; and the protic ionic liquid comprises at least one cation comprising at least one reversible proton with a pKa smaller than or equal to 16. In the method (B), the ionically conductive medium comprises an additive that is at least one of triflic acid, benzonitrile:HTf, acetophenone:HTf, methanesulfonic acid, hydronium triflate, pyridazinium triflate, acetic acid, pyridinium triflate, 1,2-dimethylimidaozlium triflate, n,n-diethyl-n-methylammonium triflate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol, 2-butyl-1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidinium triflate, or water. In the method (B), the ratio of the concentration of the protic ionic liquid to the aprotic ionic liquid is at least 1:100. In the electrochemical cell (IV), the ionically conductive medium further comprises a metal-containing additive, water, and/or an organic molecule. In the electrochemical cell (IV), both of the aprotic ionic liquid and the protic ionic liquid are a low temperature ionic liquid or a room temperature ionic liquid. In the electrochemical cell (IV), the ionically conductive medium further: comprises 10-50000 ppm of water; and a metal-containing additive, where the metal of the additive is different from the metal of the fuel electrode. In the electrochemical cell (IV), protic ionic liquid comprises at least one cation comprising at least one reversible proton with a pKa less than or equal to 16.