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CATEGORIES:SCI Cambridge Science Talks
SUMMARY:Electrolysis: What Textbooks Don’t Tell Us - Dr Ha
 sok Chang\, Department of History and Philosophy o
 f Science\, Cambridge
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20181129T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20181129T200000
UID:TALK115039AThttp://talks.cam.ac.uk
URL:http://talks.cam.ac.uk/talk/index/115039
DESCRIPTION:The electrolysis of water and aqueous salt solutio
 ns is a common and significant subject in chemistr
 y instruction at various levels.  \n\nHowever\, te
 xtbook treatments of electrolysis are often inadeq
 uate and misleading\, and also mutually contradict
 ory.  In this paper we present an analysis of a nu
 mber of chemistry textbooks at GCSE\, A-level\, an
 d introductory university levels\, supplemented by
  our own experimental work and some relevant histo
 rical perspective. \n\nIn the electrolysis of wate
 r there are open questions about whether the resul
 tant hydrogen and oxygen gases originate from pre-
 dissociated ions\, or a direct reduction and oxida
 tion of H2O molecules.  Hardly any textbooks give 
 a convincing account of the precise role played by
  the added electrolyte to facilitate the electroly
 sis of water.  And generally there is an unnecessa
 ry downplaying of the various interesting secondar
 y reactions in electrolysis.  We argue that the te
 xtbook treatments would be improved by an admissio
 n of complexities that can spur students on to fur
 ther learning\, and a recognition that there are v
 iable competing accounts. In fact\, we argue that 
 the most insightful elementary model of electrolys
 is was advanced in the mid-19th century by J F Dan
 iell and W A Miller\, an account that is almost un
 iversally ignored in modern textbooks. \n\nWe conc
 lude with a brief discussion of broader implicatio
 ns of this study for science education in general.
LOCATION:Pfizer Lecture Theatre\, Department of Chemistry\,
  Lensfield Road\, Cambridge
CONTACT:Andrew Howe
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