Electrolitic Cell

[frosch45]

Hey guys

 

If I had a solar-powered charger something like this...

 

http://apexdistribution.stores.yahoo.net/6wasopage.html

 

...or something similar...

 

If I hooked it directly up to the electrodes in an electrolytic cell, for all intensive purposes platinum or graphite

 

would it be damaged or ruined or would it stop working?

 

The reason that I ask this is because the last time that I had to do electrolysis for something, I used a transformer from an old appliance that hooked up to the AC wall socket, and I hooked it up to my electrodes. The problem was, after about 4 hours or so, everything stopped working and the transformer no longer worked... any ideas of what could have happened?

 

I just don't want something to happen to something nice like a solar cell, electricity is getting so expensive lately....

 

As you can tell, I don't know much about electricity, maybe this belongs in the physics section or something...

 

I understand electrolysis though....well....at least i thought, now i'm uncertain

 

or would it be better for me to charge a battery with the solar cell, and use that for hook up to the electrodes? I just don't want anything damaged (in terms of the power supply). Obviously, I know that for better electrolysis you want higher amps instead of volts.

 

 

Thanks

Edited July 1, 2008 by frosch45
forgot something

[Theophrastus]

I'm unsure about your solar cell, but I think I can hazard a guess at what occured. In the electrolysis of water (Or any substance, for that matter), there is no load, on the electrical circuit, and as such, what can occur over time, is the "burning out" of your battery, due to overheating. It's similar to what occurs, when you take a battery, and connect a wire, attaching the battery's negative and positive end (do not actually try this, (for safety reasons), simply take my word for it). With no load in between, all the electricity does, is heats the battery and the wire. Eventually, this overheating will lead the battery to burn out. Certainly this is an extreme example, as the electrolyte, not bearing the same aptitude of conductive properties, as a wire, offers some manner of load, (well, not a load, rather an obstacle, if you will, for the electricity). However, the purpose of electrolysis, is rather for this current of electricity, flowing through the electrolyte, to produce a negative charge on one electrode, and a positive charge on the opposite. This charge, will then induce the dissassociation of ionic, and polar compounds, such as (theoretically, not practically speaking) water, salt, etc. By "breaking apart" these compounds, you can obtain, their components. (ie NaCl > Na + Cl, 2H20 > 2H2 + O2, etc.) As for whether the process will damage your solar cell, that I am unsure of, as I'm not very well familiar with the basis of the photoelectric effect. Hope this helps!

 

,Theophrastus