A measurement technique for electrolytic tanks incorporating unpolished copper electrodes

A new method for the determination of equipotentials on an electrical model in an electrolytic tank is considered. The model is constructed with copper electrodes and tap water as an electrolyte at an alternating 50 c/s voltage supply. It has been verified experimentally that the resistance of the electrode-electrolyte contact surface is not only capacitive but also nonlinear, and therefore the second harmonic is generated. This harmonic, in combination with the corresponding null indicator, makes possible an accurate and single-valued determination of equipotentials. Since the nonlinear contact impedance is utilized the electrodes do not require polishing, as is usual with other methods.