Copper–copper(II) sulfate electrode in the Daniel-Jakobi galvanic cell. Copper–copper(II) sulfate electrode The copper–copper(II) sulfate electrode is a reference electrode of the first kind, based on the redox reaction with participation of the metal (copper) and its salt, copper(II) sulfate. It is used for measuring electrode potential and is the most commonly used reference electrode for testing cathodic protection corrosion control systems. The corresponding equation can be presented as follow: This reaction characterized by reversible and fast electrode kinetics, meaning that a sufficiently high current can be passed through the electrode with the 100% efficiency of the redox reaction (dissolution of the metal or
Standard electrode potential potentials are independent of the number of electrons transferred —they are expressed in volts, which measure energy per electron transferred—and so the two electrode potentials can be simply combined to give the overall "cell" potential even if different numbers of electrons are involved in the two electrode reactions. For practical measurements, the electrode in question is connected to the positive terminal of the electrometer, while SHE is connected to the negative terminal. The larger the value of the standard reduction potentials, the easier it is for the element to be reduced (accept electrons); in other words, they are better oxidizing