Which condition did you change?
Labs / Chemistry
Galvanic Cell
Pick a metal for each half-cell and click the switch to close the circuit. The metal that gives up electrons more easily becomes the anode, electrons stream through the wire to the cathode, and ions drift across the salt bridge to keep each beaker neutral. The meter shows the voltage predicted by the standard reduction potentials.
Labs / Chemistry / Galvanic Cell
Galvanic Cell
Pick a metal for each half-cell and click the switch to close the circuit. The metal that gives up electrons more easily becomes the anode, electrons stream through the wire to the cathode, and ions drift across the salt bridge to keep each beaker neutral. The meter shows the voltage predicted by the standard reduction potentials.
Why it matters
Why explore this?
Chemistry connects events too small to see with changes we can measure. This model helps you link particles, energy, and conditions to an observable result.
Explore
Try the model
E°cell 1.10 VEcell 1.10 Ve⁻ → Cu
Investigate
Questions to test
Predict first, try it in the model, then use what you observe to answer.
What to try
- Which pairing gives the biggest voltage — and which metal always ends up as the anode no matter what it's paired with?
- Put the same metal on both sides. Why does the meter read 0 V and the electrons stop moving?
- Swap the two metals so the anode and cathode trade places. Which way do the electrons flow now?
- Dilute the cathode's ion solution. Why does a lower concentration pull the cell voltage down (the Nernst equation)?
- Open the switch while a reaction is running. Where does the voltage go, and why do the ions in the salt bridge stop drifting?
Explain
Make sense of what happened
Describe what happened at the particle or energy level, then connect it to the result you saw. A strong explanation names both the cause and the evidence.
Check
Before you leave
What happened to the particles or energy?
What observation supports your explanation?
If you can answer all three using evidence from the model, you understand the main idea. If not, return to Explore and change one setting at a time.