Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018

Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

PURPOSE
To p​erform an electrolysis of copper (II) chloride and sodium chloride using a u-tube.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
In this experiment, we are using graphite rods as the cathode and anode. Cathodes are
where species are reduced, or gaining electrons.
Anodes are where species are oxidized, or losing
electrons. Both anodes and cathodes are
electrodes, or ionic conductors. The anode in our
lab is attached to positive side of the battery,
while the cathode is attached to the negative side
of the battery. We are using an electrolytic mode,
which is a setup where non-spontaneous redox
reactions are driven by external voltage. It is
non-spontaneous because an energy source is
required; we are using a 9- battery in this case.
The difference between anodes and cathodes
depend on the flow. In this case, the current
flows from the power source and pushes electrons
onto the cathode. In simpler terms, the energy
flows from the anode, through the battery, to the
cathode. This is a process known as electrolysis.
Electrolysis is where electric currents produces
chemical changes in substances by flowing
through the substance. For the electrolysis
experiment to be successful, ions must be free to move around, which is why we used a copper
chloride solution. The same applies to sodium chloride; it breaks into hydrogen and chlorine
while aqueous sodium hydroxide remains in the solution. The sodium chloride solution is
expected to form hydrogen gas at the cathode, chlorine gas at the anode, and sodium hydroxide.
The reason why hydrogen gas is formed at the cathode is because hydrogen has a charge of one
plus, meaning it will attract to something with a negative charge, like a cathode. The same goes
for why chlorine gas formed at the anode; chlorine has a charge of negative one and is attracted
to the positive charge of the anode. The sodium hydroxide solution forms because Na+ and OH-
do not discharge at the electrodes, therefore forming a solution. A copper chloride solution is
broken up into copper metal and chlorine gas; because of this, the copper chloride solution is
expected to form a copper deposit on the cathode and chlorine gas on the anode because
opposites attract. This setup requires alligator clips, a u-shaped glass tube, and a 9- battery. A
U-shaped glass is used to connect the anode and cathode to allow the energy to flow from one to
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

the other. Alligator clips are used to create electrical connections between an anode and cathode.
A 9- battery is used as an energy source.

MATERIALS
● U-shaped glass tube
● Copper (II) Chloride Solution
● Sodium Chloride Solution
● 250 mL beaker (2)
● Carbon Electrodes (2)
● Alligator Clip (2)
● Graphite Rode (2)
● 9- Battery
● Funnel
● Pipet
● Squirt Bottle

PROCEDURE
Part 1: Setting Up The U-Tube
1. The U-Tube was placed inside a 250 mL beaker, allowing it to stand on its own.
Part 2: Copper (II) Chloride Solution
1. The copper (II) chloride solution was poured into the U-Tube using a funnel, filling the
tube up to a point before the point indicated
2. A pipet was used to fill the u-tube with solution to the exact indicated point
3. A carbon electrode was placed in the right side of the tube, another was placed in the left.
4. One end of an electrode was attached to a 9 volt battery on its positive end using the
alligator clip to attach the battery to the electrode
5. The other electrode was attached to the battery’s negative end using the alligator clip to
attach the battery to the electrode
6. After 10 minutes, a diagram of the reaction was drawn
7. After 45 minutes, another diagram of the reaction was drawn
8. The alligator clips were moved to opposite electrodes, leaving the electrodes on the same
side of the u-tube, and the battery was left attached to the same alligator clips as before
Part 2: Sodium Chloride Solution
1. The sodium chloride solution was poured into the U-Tube using a funnel, filling the tube
up to a point before the point indicated
2. A pipet was used to fill the u-tube with solution to the exact indicated point
3. A carbon electrode was placed in the right side of the tube, another was placed in the left.
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

4. One end of an electrode was attached to a 9 volt battery on its positive end using the
alligator clip to attach the battery to the electrode
5. The other electrode was attached to the battery’s negative end using the alligator clip to
attach the battery to the electrode
6. After 10 minutes, a diagram of the reaction was drawn
7. After 45 minutes, another diagram of the reaction was drawn
8. The alligator clips were moved to opposite electrodes, leaving the electrodes on the same
side of the u-tube, and the battery was left attached to the same alligator clips as before

DATA AND OBSERVATIONS

Copper (II) Chloride
Anode (connected to positive side) Cathode (connected to negative
side)

Observations - Bubbling at the bottom as - End of rod is white

soon as the battery was
connected
- Bubbles all throughout the
part electrode submerged in
water after 15 minutes
- Bubbles floating to the
opening of the u-tub
- Bubbles are floating up at a
faster rate than before (29
min)
- Bubbles collecting at the top
of the u-tube, adhering to the
glass
- Red at the top of the electrode
- The white part began to
change to a reddish color
after approximately 8
minutes
- More red after 20 min,
there is still some white
- Darker red at the bottom
after 23 minutes, still some
white
- Little gray flakes are at the
bottom of the electrode,
building off each other
- Some flakes fell to the
bottom of the u-tube
- Red part is being covered
by the gray flakes
- Red flake on the bottom of
the u-tube (44 min)

Previously Cathode Previously Anode

Observations - The dark red disappeared; it - Bubbles at the bottom

after switch went back to white at the disappeared
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab
bottom
- White disappeared and the
electrode began to go back to
its normal color
Sodium Chloride
Anode (connected to positive side)
Observations - Started to bubble at the
bottom as soon as it was
connected to battery
- Bubbles all along the rod
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
- Formation of bubbles
stopped
- Red began to form at the
bottom of the electrode
Cathode (connected to negative
side)
- Bubbles and releases
yellow puffs
- Yellow cloud stays only on
the side of the u-tube, it
stops about halfway
through the bottom part
- A little rim of red at the
yellow cloud at the part
where it stops at the bottom
of the u-tube
- The red expanded, the
u-tube has a yellow cloud
and at the bottom is a
orange cloud
- orange cloud touches the
bottom of the other rod
- Bubbles are being formed
at a faster rate than the
other side
- orange cloud precipitated at
the bottom of the tube
- Greenish brown precipitate
forms at the top of the tube
- White cloud floats from
bottom to top
- 13 minutes: the yellow
starts to fade and is
replaced with a lot of
bubbles; yellow residue
remains at the top and
along the side of the glass
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

Previously Cathode Previously Anode

Observations - Bubbles stopped - Bubbles began to form

after switch - Still yellow residue
- Residue turned slightly
green at the top
- Orange precipitate began to
fade
- There is green precipitate at
the bottom next to the
orange
- Green precipitate is chunky
- Green precipitate is closer to
the rod than to the middle

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Sketch you diagram for “after 10 minutes” and “after 45 minutes”. Label the following.
a. The positive and negative electrode
b. The direction of the flow of electrons
c. The cathode and the anode
d. The side where oxidation is occurring and the side where reduction is happening
e. The reaction happening at the anode and in the anode
Copper Chloride (10 minutes)
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

Copper Chloride (45 minutes)

Sodium Chloride (10 minutes)

 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

Sodium Chloride (45 minutes)

2. Describe what happened in the cathode. Is this expected to happen? Why or why not?
In the copper (II) chloride experiment, the cathode turned white and multiple shades of
red. Whilst this color change was happening, gray flakes were building up at the bottom
of the cathode side, eventually covering most of the red and white parts. It was expected
because the solution broke up into chlorine gas and copper metal, which is the precipitate.
Additionally, copper is a reddish brown, which explains the color of the precipitate. In
the sodium chloride solution, a yellow cloud formed. Later on, a rim of red is formed
around the yellow cloud and an orange cloud forms at the bottom of the u-tube, which
ended up precipitating. Additionally, another precipitate, greenish brown in color,
formed at the top of the u-tube. The yellow cloud starts to fade to the top and bubbles
replaced where it used to be. This was expected because sodium is a metal, therefore
attracted to negative charges, which explains why a precipitate was formed on the
negative (cathode) side.
3. Describe what happens in the anode. Is this expected to happen? Why or why not?
The anodes from both the copper (II) chloride solution and the sodium chloride solution
bubbled. This is expected because the the anode is attached to the positive side of the
battery and chlorine has a charge of negative one. Therefore, the formation of chlorine
gas from each solution to appears on the positive side, or the anode side, because
opposites attract.
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

4. Write a balanced equation for the overall reaction that is occurring for both solutions.
Write the half reactions occurring on both the cathode and the anode.
Copper (II) Chloride:
Cu​2+​+ 2Cl​-​ → Cl​2​(g) + Cu
Reduction Reaction: Cu​2+​→ Cu
Oxidation Reaction: 2Cl​-​ → Cl​2
2e​-​ +Cu​2+​→ Cu
2Cl​-​→ Cl​2​ + 2e​-
Cu​2+​+ 2Cl​-​ → Cl​2​(g) + Cu: Final
Sodium Chloride:
Na​+​ + Cl​-​ → Na + Cl​2
Reduction Reaction: Na​+​→ Na
Oxidation Reaction: Cl​-​ → Cl​2
2e​-​ + 2Na​+​→ 2Na
2Cl​-​ → Cl​2​ + 2e​-
2Na​+​ + 2Cl​-​ → 2Na + Cl​2​; Final
5. What happened when you switched the alligator clips?
When we switched alligator clips, the observations from the former one began appearing
on the latter one. To expand, the previously cathode side of the copper chloride solution
began exhibiting features the original anode did, like bubbling, and even had reversed the
effects caused by the original cathode, with the red and white precipitate slowly
disappearing. A similar situation goes for the previously anode side, for it began to form
a red precipitate. As for the sodium chloride solution, the previously cathode formed the
similar precipitates to the original cathode and the previously anode began to bubble.
This shows that the behavior of the electrode depends solely on whether it is attached to
the negative or positive side of the battery, for each side has their own, unique reaction.
Switching the clips makes the new reaction replace the old.
6. Compare you results with your hypothesis. Was your hypothesis consistent with your
observations in the experiment?
After comparing the results with my hypothesis, my hypothesis was consistent with the
observations from the experiment. Generally, the anodes produced bubbles because they
attracted chlorine gas, composed of negative 1 charged chlorine ions, and cathodes
attracted the positive species, whether that be copper or hydrogen gas.
7. Compare the data you obtained for copper (II) chloride and sodium chloride. Did you get
similar results? Was this expected? Explain.
After comparing the data we obtained for copper (II) chloride and sodium chloride, we
did get similar results. The results were similar in the sense that the anodes both bubbled
and both cathodes produced precipitates. Similar results were expected because they are
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

both chlorides and despite producing different precipitates, produced the same gas,
chlorine gas to be specific, on the anode side. Another reason why similar results were
expected is that they conditions remained the same for each experiment, meaning we did
not alter the pressure, temperature, quantity, etcetera, and did not change the battery we
used.

CONCLUSION
The expectation of the behavior of the cathode and anode side correlated to our laboratory
observations.

SOURCES OF ERROR
There were many sources of error throughout this lab. First of all, it was hard to
thoroughly clean and dry the youtube, so the excess water used for cleaning it could have slightly
diluted the solution and the precipitate that was hard to wash could have contaminated the latter
experiment. Additionally, it was really hard to hold the u-tube up right because there is not a flat
surface, which made accurately pouring in the right quantity and having equal amounts of
solution on each side of the u-tube difficult. We also did not use a brand new battery which
could have made our experiment less accurate.

RECOMMENDATIONS
I recommend to use a brand new battery to perform your experiment. I also think it is
best to thoroughly clean and dry the u-tube with a flexible, long device to get into the bottom of
it. Also, it would be ideal to have a u-tube holder of some sort (clamp) to properly secure it or
stuff the beaker with paper towels, making sure not to cover it up so observations can still be
made, so the tube fits more snug. The u-tube was also moved around a lot so I would
recommend to keep it more still because stirring and swirling are not required and it would
facilitate taking observations.

REFERENCES
Chemistry Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from
https://www.chemicool.com/definition/cathode-anode.html
Electrolytic cells. (n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/electrolytic-cells
Milner, W. (2018, March 13). How to Connect Wires With an Alligator Clip. Retrieved April 18,
2018, from ​https://sciencing.com/connect-wires-alligator-clip-7777430.html
GCSE Bitesize: Electrolysis. (n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_aqa_pre_2011/ions/electrolysisrev1.shtm
l
 Piedmont Hills High School - AP Chemistry 2017-2018
Phan, Madalyn
Period ⅘
Laboratory Experiment 5: Electrolysis Lab

Mott, V. (n.d.). Introduction to Chemistry. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/introchem/chapter/electrolysis-of-sodium-chloride/
(n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from
http://www.docbrown.info/page01/ExIndChem/electrochemistry06.htm
GCSE Bitesize: Electrolysis. (n.d.). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/ocr_gateway/chemical_resources/sodium_chl
oriderev2.shtml