• 10 parts
  • Checked September 2026

Electrolytic Cell Diagram

Molten salt split by a battery: where each ion goes and what it becomes.

Electrolytic Cell Diagram

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Power source
  2. Anode
  3. Cathode
  4. Electrolyte
  5. Wires
  6. Electron flow
  7. Cations
  8. Anions
  9. Chlorine gas
  10. Sodium

Drawn for this site by script, 2026-09-27. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: a galvanic cell, the reverse

All 10 parts on the diagram

Show the list

Start here: 4 main parts 4

  1. Power source The battery or other outside source of electricity. It forces a reaction that would not happen on its own.
  2. Anode The electrode joined to the positive terminal. Oxidation happens here: chloride ions give up electrons.
  3. Cathode The electrode joined to the negative terminal. Reduction happens here: sodium ions take up electrons.
  4. Electrolyte Here molten sodium chloride. Its ions are free to move, so it carries the current between the electrodes.

What moves: 4 4

  1. Wires They join the power source to the electrodes and carry the electrons.
  2. Electron flow Electrons are pushed from the negative terminal to the cathode. They are drawn from the anode back to the positive terminal.
  3. Cations Positive ions, here sodium ions. They move to the negative cathode.
  4. Anions Negative ions, here chloride ions. They move to the positive anode.

What is made: 2 2

  1. Chlorine gas Made at the anode as chloride ions lose electrons. Given off as bubbles.
  2. Sodium Liquid sodium metal, made at the cathode as sodium ions gain electrons. It rises and collects at the top.

How this list was compiled: Read 2026-09-27. (1) OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 17.7 Electrolysis, https://openstax.org/books/chemistry-2e/pages/17-7-electrolysis (used to check, nothing copied): the electrolysis of molten sodium chloride, chloride oxidized to chlorine gas at the anode and sodium ions reduced to liquid sodium at the cathode; the reaction is not spontaneous and is forced by an applied potential; such cells use iron cathodes and carbon anodes. (2) Wikipedia, Electrolytic cell, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrolytic_cell : an electrochemical cell that uses an external source of electrical energy to drive a non-spontaneous reaction; a voltage applied between the anode (positive) and the cathode (negative), immersed in an electrolyte. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site by script, 2026-09-27. Own work, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

An electrolytic cell diagram for the electrolysis of molten sodium chloride. Start with the 4 main parts, then follow what moves and what is made.

Read the full guide

Follow the charges

The battery pushes electrons into the cathode, making it negative, and pulls them from the anode, making it positive. Positive sodium ions move to the cathode; negative chloride ions move to the anode.

What is made

At the anode, chloride ions lose electrons and chlorine gas bubbles off. At the cathode, sodium ions gain electrons and become liquid sodium metal.

  • An Ox and a Red Cat: oxidation happens at the anode and reduction at the cathode, in every cell.

Questions and answers

Is the anode positive or negative in an electrolytic cell?

Positive. It is joined to the positive terminal of the power source. In a galvanic cell it is the other way round: the anode is the negative electrode.

What is the difference between an electrolytic cell and a galvanic cell?

A galvanic cell makes electricity from a reaction that happens on its own. An electrolytic cell uses electricity from outside to force a reaction that would not.

What does electrolysis of molten sodium chloride produce?

Chlorine gas at the anode and liquid sodium metal at the cathode. It is how both are made in industry.

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