Energy Conversions

[matt123]

think of it like this
the redox chemical reactions are endothermic ( they need huge sums of energy inorder to work)
the powersource gives them this energy

this chemical energy isnt "stored"
the chemical energy is in the PRODUCTS produced at the end.

[matt123]

The chemical energy is within the products. The point of electrolysis is to rewind the clock basically, because when discharging, the chemical energy is being used up, and when it's gone... you put it back in! via electrical energy. Then after its recharged, you use the chemical energy you made and the cycle goes on

yes this is exactly right lol

[98.40_for_sure]

Wahahaha not beaten by matt123 this time, we're even

[matt123]

wait think of it like this
i hope this helps

there are 2 things that happen in batteries ( electrolytic cells)

1. DISCHARGE - ... its a galvanic reaction right? . the CHEMICAL REACTANTS are producing electrical energy
then we use the electrical energy in our batteries for tv remotes etc etc
and there is no REACTANTS left to produce the electrical energy

so what we do
is 2.RECHARGE the batteries
recharhge involves the process of electrolysis.
the power source ( your phone charger /computer etc etc) .. is giving electrons into the cell ..
so that the electricity can convert the products back into reactants
so overall
in the recharge reaction ( the electrolysis reaction) .. the recants are being "remade"
and this is so that .. they can again be react to make electrical energy ( electricity) so that the tv remote / phone .. works again.

get me?

[kenhung123]

yea it makes sense now thanks. I was looking at 2 reactions when considering this which confused me lol

[matt123]

yea it makes sense now thanks. I was looking at 2 reactions when considering this which confused me lol

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
" sends off fire works , crackers . and party poppers"

finally the code has been cracked for ya
haha
yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
good

have a good night buddy
im sorry if i was a bad explainer . but i hope u truly get it now

[fady_22]

Just to clear things up: chemical energy is the energy stored in the bonds of the reactants/products of the reaction.

In galvanic cells, the reaction is exothermic, and so some energy from the bonds is released in the form of electricity (a flow of charge or a current). In electrolytic cells, the reaction is endothermic and so requires energy (electricity) to allow bonds to form, thus converting electrical energy to chemical (bond) energy.

Maybe draw a energy profile to picture this; the only difference between this and what you are used to is that the energy transformation is not chemical to heat energy, but mostly chemical to electrical (and vice versa). Some energy, as always, is lost as heat in the circuit.

[kenhung123]

Nah I confused myself because I was thinking...electorlysis and galvanic are both redox reaction involving flow of e's and such so why does the energy conversion change? But when you talk about charging and discharge and just the same reaction, it makes a lot more sense!

Thanks for the help matt and 99.95 !

[kenhung123]

Just to clear things up: chemical energy is the energy stored in the bonds of the reactants/products of the reaction.

In galvanic cells, the reaction is exothermic, and so some energy from the bonds is released in the form of electricity (a flow of charge or a current). In electrolytic cells, the reaction is endothermic and so requires energy (electricity) to allow bonds to form, thus converting electrical energy to chemical (bond) energy.

Maybe draw a energy profile to picture this; the only difference between this and what you are used to is that the energy transformation is not chemical to heat energy, but mostly chemical to electrical (and vice versa). Some energy, as always, is lost as heat in the circuit.

Oh right so that's the full chemistry explanation. Nice! Thanks fady!

[Mao]

It appears the problem has been solved, but I'm posting to add because no one seem to have mentioned the key word that the full name for chemical energy is chemical potential energy.

You should understand the difference between 'potential' energy and 'real' energy.

'Real' energy is a physically measurable quantity, such as kinetic energy (velocity is measurable) or thermal energy (heat).

Potential energy on the other hand, isn't 'real'. There is no direct way of measuring potential energy as it is not necessarily a physical quantity. In a sense, it is the amount of energy that can be released if the body is allowed to return to its original state. Remember back to gravitational potential, which is a measurement of how much kinetic energy could be generated if the object is allowed to free fall. Chemical potential energy is a measurement of how much energy (usually thermal or sometimes electrical) can be released if the 'unstable' chemical is allowed form its 'stable' counterparts.

Electrical energy is also a type of potential energy.

The transfer of energy from one type to another is called 'work'. In this sense, electricity possessing electric potential energy can perform electrical work on chemicals, thus increasing the chemical potential energy of these chemicals (by forming less stable chemical bonds which are capable of releasing more energy). This is the case in electrolysis, where a battery that stores the electric potential energy transfers its potential to the chemical. If the new chemicals were allowed to react, this work would then be released as thermal energy, a 'real' energy.

In a galvanic cell, the reactants already have some chemical potential energy, and they are setup such that they are allowed to react by exchanging electrons. This means a lot of the potential energy would be carried by the electrons, and thus the electrons would have some electric potential energy. If these electrons were to reach the other cell and complete the reaction, this energy would be dissipated as heat. However, if we interrupt the chain by including some element that consumes electric potential energy (such as a light globe), this energy would instead be converted to light (electromagnetic energy, 'real').

The reason we like electric potential energy is because we can create electric circuits that transduces electric energy (potential) into many different types of useful outputs (Real output) at high efficiency. The purpose of power plants is really to convert chemical energy (Vast amounts stored in large amounts of coal) to electrical energy, which we then convert to TVs, washing machine, electric oven, computers, etc.

[kenhung123]

This was answered to the greatest degree of accuracy. Thanks Mao!