The Electrochemical Series Intermediate 2 Chemistry Unit 3(c)

V If you set up this experiment, what would happen?

V Salt solution What name is given to a solution like the one above?

A cell The metal HIGHER in the electrochemical series LOSES electrons to the metal lower down. ELECTRONS flow through the wires. IONS flow through the solution to complete the circuit. ELECTRONS V IONS

The electrochemical series (ECS) Electrons flow from one metal to another to create a voltage Imagine you connect different metals to TIN... Aluminium Zinc Iron Tin Lead Mg Cu Sn 1.2 V -0.5 V 0 V

+ve – the metal is above the other metal in the ECS -ve – the metal is below the other metal in the ECS 0 – the metal is the same as the other metal Mg Cu Sn 1.2 V -0.5 V 0 V large number – large gap between the metals in the ECS small number – small gap between the metals in the ECS

Magnesium Aluminium Zinc Iron Tin Lead Copper Above tin Large gap Below tin Small gap

The problem... You have a selection of different metals, but you don’t know what any of them are By connecting them together in cells: rank them according to their position in the ECS suggest what metal each one actually is *Tip – the metal you start with (and are comparing to) should always be connected to the +ve terminal of the voltmeter

Half cells