Why carbon electrodes are used in electrolytic cell?
Earth is abundant with several metals and naturally occurring substances. Similarly, carbon is something that is also a naturally occurring substance and therefore carbon electrodes are made of an allotrope of carbon called graphite. For that matter a carbon electrode or CPE is made from a mixture of conducting graphite powder and a pasting liquid. These electrodes are simple to make and offer an easily renewable surface for electron exchange.
If you’re confused about what exactly it is used for, then allotrope is a structure of a material made of a single element, in terms of how the atoms in that structure organize themselves. Many a times the carbon atoms are linked together in several hexagonal-shapes. These are bonded in turn to more hexagons to make a layer of graphene that is approximately one carbon atom thick. When these graphene layers are stacked up on top of each other with good strength and high level of uniformity there are methods to prove it towards.
More Functionality of Carbon Electrodes
Let us throw some insight on other features of carbon electrodes. We shouldn’t neglect the fact that carbon forms graphite electrodes. It is the most edible compressive strength that makes it one atom thick and bonds between each sheet of graphene. However, its bonds are weaker, and so graphite naturally occurs as a soft and slightly brittle material.
