A Gas Electrode: Behavior of the Chlorine Injection Electrode in Fused Alkali Chlorides

Abstract

The electroreduction of chlorine in fused alkali chlorides was studied by transient electrochemical techniques on graphite and carbon electrodes. Two types of experiments were carried out. First, on massive electrodes, the separate contributions of dissolved chlorine and of chlorine from bubbles at the electrode surface were detected. Second, injection electrodes were used to improve the efficiency of the reduction; the chlorine gas introduced inside the electrode flowed through the wall of the electrode. A model is presented to describe the behavior of this gas electrode; the model takes into consideration the main parameters which influence the electrode process: the properties of carbon and graphite (density, porosity, pore distribution), the wetting properties of the electrode process, the chlorine pressure, and the temperature.