Electrolytic cell reaction which would not occur spontaneously otherwise. A galvanic cell can be considered an electrolytic cell acting in reverse. While electrolytic cells convert electrical energy into chemical energy, galvanic cells convert chemical energy into electrical energy. Galvanic cells are often used in batteries. Michael Faraday defined the cathode of a cell as the electrode to which cations (positively charged ions, like silver ions Ag) flow within the cell, to be reduced by reacting with electrons (negatively charged) from that electrode. Likewise he defined the anode as the electrode to which anions (negatively charged ions, like chloride ions Cl) flow within
Silver chloride electrode bond with silver of the electrode resulting in silver chloride and free electrons to deliver to the lead wire. The reaction allows current to pass from electrolyte to electrode and the electron current passes through the lead wire for the instrument to read. When there is an uneven distribution of cations and anions, there will be a small voltage called "half-cell potential" associated with the current. In the DC system that is used by the ECG and EEG instruments, the difference between the half-cell potential and the zero potential is shown as DC offset which is an undesirable characteristic. Silver/silver