When an electrolytic cell is used for silver-plating a spoon, an electric current is passed through an electrolyte solution containing silver ions. The spoon serves as the cathode (negative electrode), attracting silver ions from the solution, which then reduce and deposit as metallic silver on its surface. Simultaneously, oxidation occurs at the anode, often involving a silver electrode that releases more silver ions into the solution. This process allows for a thin, even layer of silver to be plated onto the spoon.
In an electrolytic cell
An electrolytic cell
Electrolytic cell
A galvanic cell can become an electrolytic cell by applying an external voltage that is of opposite polarity to the cell's spontaneous voltage. This external voltage can overcome the natural tendency of the cell to generate electricity and drive a non-spontaneous chemical reaction in the reverse direction, converting it into an electrolytic cell.
An electrolytic cell
Reduction occurs at the cathode in an electrolytic cell.
Oxidation occurs at the anode of an electrolytic cell.
In an electrolytic cell, electrical energy is transformed into chemical energy. This occurs when an external voltage is applied to drive a non-spontaneous redox reaction to produce a desired chemical product.
Reduction occurs at the cathode in an electrolytic cell. This is where cations in the electrolyte solution gain electrons and get reduced, leading to the deposition of a substance onto the cathode.
An electrolytic cell
A nonspontaneous redox reaction is driven by an external source of electrical energy, such as a battery, when a current passes through the electrolytic cell. In an electrolytic cell, the anode is positive and the cathode is negative; electrons flow from the anode to the cathode, and oxidation occurs at the anode while reduction occurs at the cathode.
In an electrolytic cell
Diagram of electrolytic cell
In an electrolytic cell, the anode is positive.
The electrode where reduction occurs.
The significance of anode polarity in electrochemistry is that it determines the direction of electron flow in a galvanic cell or electrolytic cell. The anode is where oxidation occurs, and it is positively charged in a galvanic cell and negatively charged in an electrolytic cell. This polarity affects the overall reaction and the flow of ions in the cell.
Reduction occurs at the cathode in an electrolytic cell.