Faraday's laws of electrolysis

Faraday's laws of electrolysis are quantitative relationships based on the electrochemical researches published by Michael Faraday in 1834. [cite journal | author = Ehl, Rosemary Gene | coauthors = Ihde, Aaron | title = Faraday's Electrochemical Laws and the Determination of Equivalent Weights | journal = Journal of Chemical Education | year = 1954 | volume = 31 | issue = May | pages = 226 – 232 ]

tatements of the laws

Several versions of the laws can be found in textbooks and the scientific literature. The most-common statements resemble the following:

: Faraday's 1^st Law of Electrolysis - The mass of a substance altered at an electrode during electrolysis is directly proportional to the quantity of electricity transferred at that electrode. Quantity of electricity refers to electrical charge, typically measured in coulombs, and not to electrical current.

: Faraday's 2^nd Law of Electrolysis - For a given quantity of electricity (electric charge), the mass of an elemental material altered at an electrode is directly proportional to the element's equivalent weight. The equivalent weight of a substance is its molar mass divided by an integer that depends on the reaction undergone by the material.

Mathematical form

Faraday's laws can be summarized by

:$m\; =\; (\{\; Q\; over\; F\; \})(\{\; M\; over\; z\; \})$

where

: "m" is the mass of the substance altered at an electrode: "Q" is the total electric charge passed through the substance: "F" = 96 485 C mol^-1 is the Faraday constant: "M" is the molar mass of the substance: "z" is the valence number of ions of the substance (electrons transferred per ion)

Note that "M / z" is the same as the equivalent weight of the substance altered.

For Faraday's first law, "M", "F", and "z" are constants, so that the larger the value of "Q" the larger m will be.

For Faraday's second law, "Q", "F", and "z" are constants, so that the larger the value of "M / z" (equivalent weight) the larger m will be.

In the simple case of constant-current electrolysis, $Q\; =\; I\; t$ leading to

:$m\; =\; (\{\; I\; tover\; F\; \})(\{\; M\; over\; z\; \})$

and then to

:$n\; =\; (\{\; I\; tover\; F\; \})(\{\; 1\; over\; z\; \})$

where

: "n" is the amount of substance ("number of moles") altered: "n = m / M" : "t" is the total time the constant current was applied.

In the more-complicated case of a variable electrical current, the total charge "Q" is the electric current "I"("$au$") integrated over time "$au$":

:$Q\; =\; int\_0^t\; I(\; au)\; d\; au$

Here "t" is the "total" electrolysis time. Note that the parentheses in "I"("$au$") do not indicate multiplication, but rather that the current is a function of time, "$au$". [For a similar treatment, see cite journal | author = Strong, F. C. | title = Faraday's Laws in One Equation | journal = Journal of Chemical Education | year = 1961 | volume = 38 | issue = | pages = 98 ]

References

Further reading

* Serway, Moses, and Moyer, "Modern Physics", third edition (2005).

ee also

* Electrolysis
* Michael Faraday
* Faraday constant
* Faraday's law of Electromagnetic induction