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Water Electrolysis with Biobased/Low Hazard Indicators – Red Cabbage Juice or Pea Flower Tea

Water Electrolysis with Biobased/Low Hazard Indicators – Red Cabbage Juice or Pea Flower Tea
Contributors
Dean Campbell
Professor | Bradley University
cmwoodbridge
Professor of Chemistry | Georgia Gwinnett College
Saskia van Bergen
Free Range Chemist
Beyond Benign
Beyond Benign, Inc.
Setup for the electrodes and gas collection pipets. Each pipette/pencil assembly was placed in a 50 mL beaker filled about halfway with electrolyte and pea flower tea solution. The other end of each sharpened pencil was connected by clips to a 9 V battery.
Summary
Electrolysis of water is carried out using biobased/low hazard indicators to help illustrate the reaction.

Key Chemistry References for this activity:
1) Skinner, J. F. “Red Cabbage and the Electrolysis of Water.” J Chem. Educ., 1981, 58, 1017. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/ed058p1017.1
2) Hugerat, M.; Abu-Much, R.; Basheer, A.; Basheer, S. “Using Inexpensive to Free Materials to do Electrolysis Experiments with All School Ages.” Chem. Educ. J., 2009, 13. http://www.edu.utsunomiya-u.ac.jp/chem/v13n2/13M_Hugerat/M_Hugerat.html

Additional Credit to Kathy Hall from Hilltop Heritage Middle School (retired) who shared her experience teaching the resource developed by the University of Washington Clean Energy Insitute (https://www.cei.washington.edu/lesson-plans/electrochemical-chameleon/)
Keywords
Electrochemistry
Acid-Base Chemistry
Electron Transfer

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Moderation state
Published
Object Type
Laboratory experiment
Audience
Introductory Undergraduate
Published on
Green Chemistry Principles
Safer Chemistry for Accident Prevention
U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Sustainable Cities and Communities
Learning Goals/Student Objectives
In performing this experiment, a student will
- Construct and identify the components of an electrolysis cell.
- Describe how the energy from a spontaneous battery reaction can drive a nonspontaneous electrolysis process.
- Compare how this electrolysis process resembles commercial electrolysis for hydrogen production.
- Contrast the process of hydrogen production by electrolysis with hydrogen production by the petrochemical industry and consider the “greenness” of hydrogen production by water electrolysis.
- Compare the “greenness” of the pH indicators in this lab experiment with other pH indicator systems.
Common pedagogies covered
Hands-on learning
Time required (if applicable)
The entire experiment should take less than 2 hours.

Submitted by

Saskia van Bergen
Safety Precautions, Hazards, and Risk Assessment
- Red Cabbage or Pea Flower Tea
- magnesium sulfate heptahydrate CAS #10034-99-8 (on the Safer Chemical Ingredient List as a Processing Aid and Additive- https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice/safer-ingredients)
- hydrogen gas CAS #1333-74-0 (Generated in experiment)
- oxygen gas CAS #7782-44-7 (Generated in experiment)

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electrochemistry-lab-_0.docx
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Creative Commons License
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