Electrolysis can be used to extract lead from molten lead bromide, but did you know some of these interesting facts about lead? Ancient Romans used lead for making pipes. The Latin word for lead is plumbum, which is how the word ‘plumber’ was born. They also used lead acetate (lead sugar) for sweetening wine. As lead is poisonous, especially targeting the nervous system, this use may have contributed towards several reported cases of dementia among Roman Emperors!! Romans also believed that lead and tin were same. They called lead ‘plumbum nigrum’ (lead black) and tin ‘plumbum album’ (lead white).
GCSE scientists – you need to understand how electrolysis works. For help with this, try our new guide “How to work with Electrolysis”. It includes explanations on the electrolysis of molten compounds, and aqueous solutions. Included are half equations, questions for you to try, and answers to check your understanding.
To see the guide click the picture below.
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