Graphite as Sacrificial Anode

Doug D.

Doug D.

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Staff member
Some of you may have already read about or looked into using graphite as the anode for your electrolysis tank. I had pondered it for a while, saw a few sources on Amazon, and procrastinated because of the perceived expense. About the best I could find there was a 1 square foot plate for $35 plus shipping. I then read some online discussion which included a link to an eBay seller offering surplus plates approx. 12"x18"x3/8", quantity of two $20 plus shipping.

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The plates arrived intact, and, even though my charger connectors were overdue for maintenance, I just had to hook it up anyway to see what would happen.

The pan I chose had been in the lye bath for weeks, and had some areas of really tough carbon remaining the lye would not budge. Once powered up, the pan started fizzing away just like with my old sheet metal anode. Within an hour or so, the carbon residue had loosened and begun to shed off. Probably would have gone faster had I first replaced the rusty old clamps with new.

Once it had done all it appeared it could, I took the pan inside to rinse and season it. I first rinsed it under cold running water, as is my custom. Drying it off, I noted the paper towel becoming quite blackened, although a residue was not apparent to the naked eye. I also noted, as I went about gathering the usual items for seasoning, the pan showed absolutely no signs of flash rusting. So, for experimental purposes, I stopped and left it unseasoned. That's been over a week ago, and it still has not rusted. :icon_scratchchin:

I now need to acquire a rusty pan to give it a proper test, and also to see if the no flash rust thing happens again or was just a fluke. I have an old Lodge hammered piece this also once happened with.
 
I am curious as to what is the benefits of having both systems for cleaning? If the electrolysis method is so effective what is the benefit of having a lye tank also? Are there certain substances that are not removed by one or the other?

---------- Post added at 05:16 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:12 PM ----------

Sorry I got off topic. I was interested in the possibility of the graphite leaving a film on the pan. If it was graphite that is?
 
Lye will not remove rust. But lye will remove crud, both unattended and at one's leisure, whereas electrolysis will also remove crud, but bears monitoring.

Graphite is carbon, so if anything was on the pan (since rust was not in this case to be converted), it had to be carbon. If it had been rusty, the black residue would be assumed to be ferrous oxide a.k.a. black rust, a soft form of iron oxide that can be rinsed off.
 
Doug, Can you cut the graphite with a carbide saw?

I will be watching how you make out. This is on my spring to do list, well if spring does come.
 
I bought the size I needed, so had no cause to want to cut. It apparently can be cut with a carbide saw, and by other means, depending on thickness.
 
I've been waiting to buy graphite until I sell my first couple pans (I want this hobby to be self sustaining). Looking forward to hearing more.

I find it curious that so many people talk about successfully removing stuck on carbon through electrolysis. I have 3 pans that have black stains left despite weeks in the lye bath. No amount of electrolysis has gotten the stuck on carbon to budge. How many amps are you pushing? I know I'm between 5A and 10A since I blew a 5A fuse and have been using a 10A fuse since then. I'm getting 12V off a PC PSU.
 
How did the graphite react as a sacrificial anode? Was there the usual crud as built up on the steel/iron anodes? Does it appear it might be more durable than the steel?
 
Rusty, there are some things that don't seem to want to move for lye or electro. The best that can be done with them, if vinegar won't help, is to minimize them by whatever safe means you can, and then let them blend in over time with seasoning. My charger is a 2amp/10amp manual that I use on the 10 amp setting.

Glenn, there was no apparent anything on the graphite plate afterwards. Having said that, the pan being cleaned wasn't rusty, either. But the graphite is supposed to eliminate that undesirable behavior of the anode rusting and becoming inefficient. Doesn't mean it doesn't erode (it's still sacrificial), but since it stays clean of oxides, it remains more efficient, both during the process and over its lifetime. That, I think, is the advantage to graphite.
 
Thanks for the tips, Doug. So far I've decided to just season over the black stains and live with them.

Glenn- I've been planning on ordering gouging rod from http://www.mcmaster.com/ - I'd give you a direct link but it doesn't work at their website, and it is difficult to find in the catalog. Do a search for "carbon gouging" instead, and you'll find 5-packs of 12" long x 3/4" diameter for $12 (among other sizes). Obviously, you don't want to buy the copper plated stuff, so pay attention if you decide to order.

I'd still rather have those nice big plates Doug found, but all the ones I see are way too expensive.
 
Those are the ones I bought. The seller has several other sizes and thicknesses. Seems to be priced roughly by the square foot.
 
Thanks Kevin and Doug. I ordered a set.

I've been wanting to try this for some time now and never found them at a reasonable price
 
Hi everyone. I'm new to the site but wanted to share my experiences with using graphite as an anode. I've probably cleaned around 40 skillets in my e-tank so far. Roughly 15 using scrap steel, and 25 with a plate of graphite. Using the graphite has been so much cleaner and easier. The graphite doesn't accumulate any build-up, regardless of how rusty the skillet is-therefore, there is never a need to clean or debris the anode. Another huge bonus is that I cannot see any noticeable erosion to the graphite yet. I think there must be a little erosion occurring though since there is a fine black silt in the solution. I've cleaned as many as 8 or 9 pans without changing the water and still got very good results.:icon_thumbsup:
 
RustyP said:
Thanks for the tips, Doug. So far I've decided to just season over the black stains and live with them.

Glenn- I've been planning on ordering gouging rod from http://www.mcmaster.com/ - I'd give you a direct link but it doesn't work at their website, and it is difficult to find in the catalog. Do a search for "carbon gouging" instead, and you'll find 5-packs of 12" long x 3/4" diameter for $12 (among other sizes). Obviously, you don't want to buy the copper plated stuff, so pay attention if you decide to order.

I'd still rather have those nice big plates Doug found, but all the ones I see are way too expensive.
Click to expand...

Just bought 4 graphite rods, 1/2" diameter, 12 " long. eBay, 18 bucks. Gotta figure how to drill small holes in the top ends to pass my copper wire through each one in order for them all to be connected as anodes.
As far as the black crud removal, I use the self cleaning cycle in my oven which is about 4 hours at 500ºF. It turns to black ash and washes right off.
 
TonyC said:
Just bought 4 graphite rods, 1/2" diameter, 12 " long. eBay, 18 bucks. Gotta figure how to drill small holes in the top ends to pass my copper wire through each one in order for them all to be connected as anodes.
As far as the black crud removal, I use the self cleaning cycle in my oven which is about 4 hours at 500ºF. It turns to black ash and washes right off.
Click to expand...

You can go to an electric supply shop and just get a clamp.:icon_thumbsup:
 
Doug,
I bought the same size graphite plates as you did. I use an 18 gallon container that is perhaps 20" in diameter. I like to put an anode on opposite sides of the container so that I get both front and back cleaned at the same time. These plates are so wide that I can only use one at a time. I need to cut them in half lengthwise.

In a previous post you said the plates could be cut with a carbide blade or by other means depending on the thickness. Will the carbide blade work on these 3/8" thick plates? If not, how should I go about cutting them?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Jack
 
I haven't had occasion to need to cut mine. I can only recommend you do as I did and search youtube for some cutting methods.
 
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