Mass Transfer and Current Distribution under Free Convection Conditions

Correlat ion of mass transfer with current distribution, for deposition and dissolution of metals, on vert ical electrodes, under free convection conditions, is discussed. The equation of mass transfer and the Laplace equation, determin-ing the concentration and potential distributions, respectively, are solved si-multaneously. The results explain most features of observed current distr ibu-tions. This paper is concerned wi th cur rent d is t r ibut ion for deposi t ion and dissolut ion of meta ls at ver t ica l electrodes. The rate of meta l deposit ion may be con-t ro l led main ly or par t ly by the rate of t rans fer of ions to the cathode. In the absence of agitat ion, ions are usua l ly t rans fer red by free convection, a process which has rece ived much theoret ica l and exper i-menta l invest igat ion (1-14). Owing to deplet ion o