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electrolytic cell

cell1 (def 8).
1935-40 Unabridged
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Examples from the web for electrolytic cell
  • When chemists made an electrolytic cell, the negative side of the cell was called a cathode.
  • The sodium dichromate is added to inhibit corrosion and to promote the main reaction in the electrolytic cell.
  • The types of electrodes used in the electrolytic cell can vary.
  • Once moisture reaches the die surface, the electric potential helps transform the device into an electrolytic cell.
  • Chlorinators convert some chloride in seawater into a sodium hypochlorite solution in an electrolytic cell.
  • The electrolytic cell is the basic device used in electrolytic recovery operations.
  • The negative pole or electrode of an electrolytic cell or system.
  • In this process, the part or parts serve as the cathode in the electrolytic cell and the solution serves as the electrolyte.
  • In this process metal is dissolved from a workpiece with direct current at a controlled rate in an electrolytic cell.
British Dictionary definitions for electrolytic cell

electrolytic cell

any device in which electrolysis occurs Sometimes shortened to cell
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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electrolytic cell in Science
electrolytic cell  
A device that contains two electrodes in contact with an electrolyte and that brings about a chemical reaction when connected to an outside source of electricity. The electrodes are made of metal or carbon, and when connected to direct current, one electrode becomes positively charged, and the other becomes negatively charged. This initiates the movement of ions in the electrolyte toward the electrodes: positive ions move toward the negative electrode and negative ions move toward the positive electrode. A chemical reaction then takes place at each electrode, with ions changing from positive to negative (or vice versa), or becoming neutralized. Electrolytic cells have many practical uses, including the recovery of pure metal from alloys, the plating of one metal with another, and the manufacture of chlorine and sodium hydroxide. Compare voltaic cell.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
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Encyclopedia Article for electrolytic cell

electrochemical cell

any device in which electrical energy is converted to chemical energy, or vice versa. Such a cell typically consists of two metallic or electronic conductors (electrodes) held apart from each other and in contact with an electrolyte (q.v.), usually a dissolved or fused ionic compound. Connection of the electrodes to a source of direct electric current renders one of them negatively charged and the other positively charged. Positive ions in the electrolyte migrate to the negative electrode (cathode) and there combine with one or more electrons, losing part or all of their charge and becoming new ions having lower charge or neutral atoms or molecules; at the same time, negative ions migrate to the positive electrode (anode) and transfer one or more electrons to it, also becoming new ions or neutral particles. The overall effect of the two processes is the transfer of electrons from the negative ions to the positive ions, a chemical reaction (see oxidation-reduction reaction). An example is the electrolysis of sodium chloride (common salt), forming sodium metal and chlorine gas; the energy required to make the reaction proceed is supplied by the electric current. Other common applications of electrolysis include electrodeposition for refining or plating of metals and the production of caustic soda.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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