electrolysis is used in electrometallurgy. This refers to the process of reducing metals from metallic compounds in order to obtain their pure forms (Scott 83). It comprises four main categories of reactions that include electrowinning, electrorefining, electroplating, and electroforming. Electrowinning refers to the process of metal extraction from natural ores (Plethcer and Walsh 57). Electrorefining refers to the process of purifying metals.
Electroplating refers to the process of depositing a metal layer on another metal while electroforming refers to manufacture of metals by depositing metal layers on other metals (Plethcer and Walsh 58). Purification is necessary because impurities affect the chemical and physical properties of metals.
