give a brief account on the application of electrolysis
Electrolysis is used for the following purposes:
- Electroplating
- Electro-refining
- Extraction of metals by electrolysis
1) Electroplating
The process of depositing a thin and compact layer of superior metal over the inferior metal by the process of electrolysis is called electroplating. It can be of many types such as silver plating and nickel plating. It is done for the following reasons:
- To prevent metallic articles from rusting. For example, articles made of iron are electroplated with nickel so as to prevent them from rusting.
- To improve appearance of articles. For example, decoration articles made from copper or brass are electroplated with silver to improve their appearance.
2) Electro-refining
Electro-refining is the process by which impurities are removed from an impure metal. Metals such as silver and copper are refined using electro-refining.
3) Electro-metallurgy
It refers to the process of extraction of metals from their fused ores by the process of electrolysis.
Example- Potassium and sodium can be extracted from their fused ores using electro-metallurgy.