SCORE:

REDOX and
BIOCHEMISTRY 1ST TRIM Lab guide Electrochemical
cells

DATE: CLASS 12th A/ B/

STUDENT: Ian Mateo Galvis, Juan Andrés Valencia, Nicholas
TEACHER: Mauricio Mancipe
Meals, Gabriel Murillo Velandia.
PERFORMANCE INDICATOR
 
HS-PS3-2.  Develop and use models to illustrate that energy at the macroscopic
scale can be accounted for as a combination of energy associated with the
motion of particles (objects) and energy associated with the relative
positions of particles (objects) 

The following guide presents the procedures that you will carry out during our
upcoming laboratory practice on electrochemical cells.
Make sure to check the materials you have to bring.

Goals:
- To build different electrochemical cells where REDOX knowledge and
calculations are learnt and applied by means of experimental and
investigative skills.
- To demonstrate the ability of chemistry to make electric current using
oxidation/reduction (REDOX) reactions, and to measure the electric current that can be
harnessed via these reactions

MATERIALS:
Pairs of electrodes: Cu/Zn, Cu/Mg, Cu/Pb, Cu/Fe

0.1M solutions of Cu(NO3)2, Zn(NO3)2, Mg(NO3)2, FeSO4, Pb(NO3)2, KCl

Water

Sodium hydroxide solution

Stirring road

Aluminium foil (you must bring it)

Sandpaper (papel lija) = 1 big piece per group, you must bring it.

1 steelwool =you must bring it.

Beakers (used for the electrochemical cells)

Graduated cylinders

Lab coat

2 pairs of Nitrile gloves (NOT LATEX), Without nitrile gloves you CAN’T enter to the lab.

1 extra disposable face mask.

Two 9-.volt batteries.

2 alligator cables (2 cables caiman-caimán) , you must bring them

PROCEDURE: YOU HAVE TO BUILD THE FLOW CHART BASED ON THIS PROCEDURES.
GROUP WITHPOUT FLOW CHARTS CAN’T ENTER THE LAB.
VOLTAIC/GALVANIC CELLS

I. You need to make up a salt bridge for your electrochemical cells. Obtain 4 pieces of
filter paper. Place these on a watch glass and cover with the KCl solution from a
pipette.
II. Polish all electrode wires with a piece of steel wool/sandpaper.
III. Carefully add 10mL of the solutions from the pipettes into the 8 beakers as shown
below. Make sure you do not contaminate the solutions by using pipettes incorrectly.

IV. Join your electrochemical cell pairs by placing a salt bridge strip across each pair. This
means each strip will be dipped into two different wells (copper nitrate and zinc
nitrate, copper nitrate and lead nitrate, etc.). Make sure the filter paper is in both of
the solutions so your ions can flow into each well.
V. Take the Cu/Zn electrode pair and place in the corresponding wells (copper goes in
copper nitrate, zinc goes in zinc nitrate). Attach the wires with alligator clips to the
voltmeter (red (+) goes with red and black (-) goes with black). Attach one clip to the
copper electrode and the other clip to the zinc electrode. Turn on the voltmeter to the
DCV setting (direct current setting). If the reading on the voltmeter is negative, then
you will need to switch the clips. Record the positive reading you obtain. Refer to the
section above on voltmeters to determine which cell is being oxidized and which is
being reduced to fill in the rest of the data sheet.
 VI. Using the appropriate electrode pair, measure the voltages for the other 3 solutions
and record the current created in volts. Fill in the data sheet for these electrochemical
cells
VII. Repeat the process for the assigned cell (Mauricio will tell you which one you have to
repeat), using solutions of the electrolyte at different concentrations. Make sure to
record the voltage recorded in each cell..

The following guide is showing an example of how the VOLTAIC/GALVANIC cell should be built.

ELECTROLYTIC CELL (WATER ELECTROLYSIS)

The following procedure displays how to build an electrolytic cell where current is needed for
driving a REDOX reaction that will split water into oxygen and hydrogen.

When you add salt to the water, the salt ions (which are highly polar) help pull the water
molecules apart into ions. Each part of the water molecule (H 2O) has a charge. The OH- ion is 2
negative, and the H+ ion is positive. This solution in water forms an electrolyte, allowing current
to flow when a voltage is applied. The H+ ions, called cations, move toward the cathode
(negative electrode), and the OH- ions, called anions, move toward the anode (positive
electrode). Bubbles of oxygen gas (O 2) form at the anode, and bubbles of hydrogen gas (H 2) form
at the cathode. The bubbles are easily seen. Twice as much hydrogen gas is produced as oxygen
gas. The net reaction:

2H2O  2H2 + O2

The following scheme shows the setup:

PROCEDURE:

1. Accordion-fold each piece of aluminium foil down the long way so that you have two
pieces approximately 1 cm x 6 cm. These are going to be your electrodes
2. Press each electrode flat
3. Bend the top 1 cm of each electrode over to act as a hanger
4. Dissolve salt (table salt) into water at the ratio of one teaspoon salt for each 50 ml of
water. Stir to dissolve the salt
5. Hang the electrodes on the inside of the bowl so that they hang down into the water. They
should hang a couple inches apart--do not let them touch during the experiment. Add
more salt water if necessary
6. Attach one end of each wire to the hanger of your electrode
7. Attach the other end of each wire to your battery.
8. Make a note which electrode is attached to the positive and which is attached to the
negative terminal of your battery
9. Once you connect the circuit, record observations based on the lab sheet provided at the
end of this document.
Use the following data sheet for collecting the information that will be needed for the lab
report.

ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS LAB DATA SHEET

1. Copper reaction:

a. Draw the copper half reaction going from copper solid to copper II ion:

Cu0(s)  Cu+2(aq) + 2e-

2. Copper-zinc redox reaction:

a. Voltage (in volts, V) _1.06v_

b. Zinc half-reaction from solid to Zn2+ :

Zn0(s)  Zn+2(aq) + 2e-

c. Net ionic equation: Cu+2 + Zn0  Cu0+ Zn+2

d. Cathode: Copper Anode: Zinc

3. Copper-magnesium redox:

a. Voltage (V): 1.57v

b. Magnesium half-reaction from solid to Mg2+:

Mg0(s)  Mg+2 +2e-

c. Net ionic equation: Mg0 + Cu+2  Mg+2 + Cu0

d. Cathode: Copper Anode: Magnesium

4. Copper-lead redox:

a. Voltage (V) 0.47v

b. Lead half-reaction from solid to Pb2+:

Pb0(s)  Pb+2(aq) + 2e-

c. Net ionic equation: Pb0 + Cu+2  Pb+2 + Cu0

d. Cathode: Copper Anode: Lead

ELECTROLYSIS OF WATER
Collect information about:

- Volume of gases produced on the two tubes.

- Time taken for reaction to occur.
- Each group will have different concentrations /amounts of NaCl added to the
system, gather that information from other groups to compare data and
perform the analysis.

Write the half reactions for both hydrogen and oxygen based on the net equation
previously provided.

2H2O  2H2 + O2

2H20  2H2+1 + 4e- : Oxidation

(O2 + 2e-  2O) * 2 : Reduction

References:

1. Blackburn, J. R.; Joesten, M. D.; Langford, P. B.; Craig, J. C.; Electrochemical Cells. In
Laboratory Manual to Accompany World of Chemistry, 2nd ed.; Thomas Learning:
Toronto, Canada, 1996; pp 247-253.
2. Harris, D. C. Fundamentals of Electrochemistry. In Quantitative Chemical Analysis, 6 th ed.;
W.H. Freeman: New York, 2003; pp 283-305. 3. Hill, W. H.; Kolb, D. K. Oxidation and
Reduction. In Chemistry for Changing Times, 11th ed.; Pearson Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle
River, NJ, 2007; pp 221-230