Electrolytic cell Electrolytic cell An electrolytic cell is an electrochemical cell that drives a non-spontaneous redox reaction through the application of electrical energy. They are often used to decompose chemical compounds, in a process called electrolysis—the Greek word lysis means "to break up". Important examples of electrolysis are the decomposition of water into hydrogen and oxygen, and bauxite into aluminium and other chemicals. Electroplating (e.g. of copper, silver, nickel or chromium) is done using an electrolytic cell. Electrolysis is a technique that uses a direct electric current (DC). An electrolytic cell has three component parts: an electrolyte and two electrodes (a cathode
Electrolytic capacitor relatively high capacitance values of electrolytic capacitors compared with other capacitor families. Because the forming voltage defines the oxide layer thickness, the desired voltage rating can be produced very simply. Electrolytic capacitors have high volumetric efficiency, the so-called "CV product", defined as the product of capacitance and voltage divide by volume. Combinations of anode materials for electrolytic capacitors and the electrolytes used have given rise to wide varieties of capacitor types with different properties. An outline of the main characteristics of the different types is shown in the table below. The non-solid or so-called "wet" aluminum electrolytic capacitors were and