In electrolysis, when same quantity of electricity is passed through different electrolytes, mass of substances deposited is proportional to

Assessment: JAMB UTME - Physics - 2024 Subject: Physics

Question 1 Report

In electrolysis, when same quantity of electricity is passed through different electrolytes, mass of substances deposited is proportional to 
Answer Details

In electrolysis, when the same quantity of electricity is passed through different electrolytes, the mass of substances deposited is proportional to their chemical equivalent. The reason for this lies in Faraday's laws of electrolysis. Faraday's second law states that the amounts of different substances deposited or liberated by the same quantity of electricity are proportional to their chemical equivalents.


Chemical equivalent refers to a measure of a substance's ability to react or be deposited during electrolysis, and it is calculated as the molar mass divided by valency (n). This is why it is sometimes also referred to as equivalent weight.


In essence, for a given charge (equal number of electrons or electricity), a substance with a lower chemical equivalent will deposit more mass because it requires fewer electrons to undergo the chemical change.

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