Investigating Electrolysis with Inert Electrodes
Ever wondered what happens when you pass electricity through different solutions? This practical lets you find out by investigating electrolysis using copper (II) sulfate and sodium chloride solutions with inert electrodes (carbon rods that don't react).
Safety comes first - you must wear eye protection throughout this experiment. The setup is straightforward: you'll use carbon electrodes connected to a 12V DC power supply, with test tubes to collect any gases produced.
For the copper (II) sulfate solution, you'll fill a beaker with the solution and insert two graphite rods. Connect one to the negative terminal (cathode) and one to the positive terminal (anode) of your power supply. The clever bit is using inverted test tubes filled with the solution to collect gases at each electrode.
When you turn on the power, oxygen gas should form at the positive electrode. You can test this by carefully holding a glowing splint just inside the test tube - if it relights, you've successfully produced oxygen!
Top Tip: Make sure your electrodes don't touch each other, or you'll short-circuit the experiment and miss all the exciting chemistry happening!