Description

The two major factors affecting the rate of corrosion in an electrochemical corrosion cell are the electrical characteristics of the electrolyte (resistivity), and the voltage difference between the anode and the cathode. The resistivity of the electrolyte is normally not a controllable characteristic, but it is measurable. The voltage or potential of the metal anode and cathode is also a measurable characteristic. The voltage measured is the voltage difference between the two electrodes. Since this voltage is dependent only on a voltage difference, there must be a reference that all other electrodes can be measured against, to give a relational table, or series, of the potential of any given electrode. As earlier stated metals all have different potentials, and any given metal has different potentials in different electrolyte.