question: What is an electrolyte and how does adding it to water makes it taste better?
comment: > What is an electrolyte... [Its what plants crave]( URL_0 ). More seriously: electrolytes are just simple biologically relevant inorganic salts. Simple biologically relevant inorganic salts generally have flavors – you are certainly familiar with the flavor of table salt (sodium chloride), but there are many others as well with very different tastes. A lot of the magnesium salt based electrolytes have a slightly "tangy" flavor to them. They taste good because these ions are necessary for you body to perform vital functions, so we have evolved for them to be tasty to us.
passages: Electrolytes are commonly found in fruit juices, sports drinks, milk, nuts, and many fruits and vegetables (whole or in juice form) (e.g., potatoes, avocados).
  
  Section::::Electrochemistry.
   Section::::Theory.:Solvent isotopic effect.
  
  The change in conductivity due to the isotope effect for deuterated electrolytes is sizable.
  
  Section::::Applications.
   Section::::Electrolyte selection.
   Supporting electrolytes are widely used in electrochemical measurements when control of electrode potentials is required. This is done to increase the conductivity of the solution (to practically eliminate the so-called IR drop), to eliminate the transport of electroactive species by ion migration in the electric field, to maintain constant ionic strength, to maintain constant pH, etc.
   BULLET::::- In batteries, two materials with different electron affinities are used as electrodes; electrons flow from one electrode to the other outside of the battery, while inside the battery the circuit is closed by the electrolyte's ions. Here, the electrode reactions convert chemical energy to electrical energy.
  
  BULLET::::- In some fuel cells, a solid electrolyte or proton conductor connects the plates electrically while keeping the hydrogen and oxygen fuel gases separated.
  
  BULLET::::- In electroplating tanks, the electrolyte simultaneously deposits metal onto the object to be plated, and electrically connects that object in the circuit.
   Molten salts can also be electrolytes as, for example, when sodium chloride is molten, the liquid conducts electricity. In particular, ionic liquids, which are molten salts with melting points below 100 °C, are a type of highly conductive non-aqueous electrolytes and thus have found more and more applications in fuel cells and batteries.
   The volume of total solids (primarily protein and lipid) in a plasma sample is approximately 7%, so that only 93% is water. The main electrolytes are confined to water phase. So for example in 10 μL plasma sample, only 9.3 μL is water that contains the electrolyte. Thus if the concentration of an electrolyte, say Na is determined to be 140 mmol/L, it is the concentration in total plasma volume, not in plasma water volume.
   The key process of electrolysis is the interchange of atoms and ions by the removal or addition of electrons from the external circuit. The desired products of electrolysis are often in a different physical state from the electrolyte and can be removed by some physical processes. For example, in the electrolysis of brine to produce hydrogen and chlorine, the products are gaseous. These gaseous products bubble from the electrolyte and are collected.
  
  A liquid containing electrolyte is produced by:
  
  BULLET::::- Solvation or reaction of an ionic compound with a solvent (such as water) to produce mobile ions
   BULLET::::- Hot, softened glass is an electrolytic conductor, and some glass manufacturers keep the glass molten by passing a large current through it.
  
  Section::::Solid electrolytes.
  
  Solid electrolytes can be mostly divided into four groups:
  
  BULLET::::- Gel electrolytes - closely resemble liquid electrolytes. In essence, they are liquids in a flexible lattice framework. Various additives are often applied to increase the conductivity of such systems.
   Electrolytic cell
  
  An electrolytic cell is an electrochemical cell that drives a non-spontaneous redox reaction through the application of electrical energy. They are often used to decompose chemical compounds, in a process called electrolysis—the Greek word lysis means "to break up".
  
  Important examples of electrolysis are the decomposition of water into hydrogen and oxygen, and bauxite into aluminium and other chemicals. Electroplating (e.g. of copper, silver, nickel or chromium) is done using an electrolytic cell. Electrolysis is a technique that uses a direct electric current (DC).
   NaCl dissolved in water can also be electrolyzed. The anode oxidizes chloride ions (Cl), and Cl gas is produced. However, at the cathode, instead of sodium ions being reduced to sodium metal, water molecules are reduced to hydroxide ions (OH) and hydrogen gas (H). The overall result of the electrolysis is the production of chlorine gas and aqueous sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution.
  
  Commercially, electrolytic cells are used in electrorefining and electrowinning of several non-ferrous metals. Almost all high-purity aluminium, copper, zinc and lead is produced industrially in electrolytic cells.
  
  Section::::Cell types.
  
  BULLET::::- Concentration cell
  
  BULLET::::- Electrochemical cell
  
  BULLET::::- Galvanic cell
   Section::::Methods.:Reversed electrodialysis.
  
  A second method being developed and studied is reversed electrodialysis or reverse dialysis, which is essentially the creation of a salt battery. This method was described by Weinstein and Leitz as “an array of alternating anion and cation exchange membranes can be used to generate electric power from the free energy of river and sea water.”
   Section::::Uses.
  
  As already noted, water, particularly when ions are added (salt water or acidic water), can be "electrolyzed" (subject to electrolysis). When driven by an external source of voltage, H ions flow to the cathode to combine with electrons to produce hydrogen gas in a reduction reaction. Likewise, OH ions flow to the anode to release electrons and an H ion to produce oxygen gas in an oxidation reaction.
   Up to the mid 1990s electrolytes could be roughly placed into two main groups:
  
  BULLET::::- electrolytes based on ethylene glycol and boric acid. In these so-called glycol or borax electrolytes, an unwanted chemical crystal water reaction occurs: "acid + alcohol gives ester + water". These borax electrolytes have been standard in electrolytic capacitors for a long time, and have a water content between 5 and 20%. They work up to a maximum temperature of 85 °C or 105 °C in the voltage range up to 600 V.
   Electrolytes are important because they are what cells (especially nerve, heart and muscle cells) use to maintain voltages across their cell membranes and to carry electrical impulses (nerve impulses, muscle contractions) across themselves and to other cells. Kidneys work to keep the electrolyte concentrations in blood constant despite changes in the body. For example, during heavy exercise, electrolytes are lost in sweat, particularly in the form of sodium and potassium. These electrolytes must be replaced to keep the electrolyte concentrations of the body fluids constant.
  
  Section::::See also.
  
  BULLET::::- Acidosis
  
  BULLET::::- Alkalosis
  
  BULLET::::- Dehydration
  
  BULLET::::- Malnutrition
  
  BULLET::::- Starvation
  
  BULLET::::- Sports drink
   Electrolyser vendors provide efficiencies based on enthalpy. To assess the claimed efficiency of an electrolyser it is important to establish how it was defined by the vendor (i.e. what enthalpy value, what current density, etc.).
  
  There are two main technologies available on the market, "alkaline" and "proton exchange membrane" (PEM) electrolysers.
   Electrolysed water
  
  Electrolysed water (electrolyzed water, EOW, ECA, electrolyzed oxidizing water, electro-activated water or electro-chemically activated water solution) is produced by the electrolysis of ordinary tap water containing dissolved sodium chloride. The electrolysis of such salt solutions produces a solution of hypochlorous acid and sodium hydroxide. The resulting water is a known cleanser and disinfectant / sanitizer.
  
  Section::::Creation.
   Maintaining an electric field in an electrolyte requires Faradaic reactions to occur at the anode and cathode. This is typically electrolysis of water, which generates hydrogen peroxide, hydrogen ions (acid) and hydroxide (base) as well as oxygen and hydrogen gas bubbles. The hydrogen peroxide and/or pH changes generated can adversely affect biological cells and biomolecules such as proteins, while gas bubbles tend to "clog" microfluidic systems. These problems can be alleviated by using alternative electrode materials such as conjugated polymers which can undergo the Faradaic reactions themselves, dramatically reducing electrolysis.
  
  Section::::See also.
  
  BULLET::::- Surface charge
  
  BULLET::::- Capillary electrophoresis
   Section::::History.:Water based electrolytes.
  
  With the goal of reducing ESR for inexpensive non-solid e-caps from the mid-1980s in Japan, new water-based electrolytes for aluminum electrolytic capacitors were developed. Water is inexpensive, an effective solvent for electrolytes, and significantly improves the conductivity of the electrolyte. The Japanese manufacturer Rubycon was a leader in the development of new water-based electrolyte systems with enhanced conductivity in the late 1990s. The new series of non-solid e-caps with water-based electrolyte was described in the data sheets as having "low-ESR", "low-impedance", "ultra-low-impedance" or "high-ripple current".
   As the main characteristic of transport through a biological membrane is its selectivity and its subsequent behavior as a barrier for certain substances, the underlying physiology of the phenomenon has been studied extensively. Investigation into membrane selectivity have classically been divided into those relating to electrolytes and non-electrolytes.
  
  Section::::Membrane selectivity.:Electrolyte selectivity.
   An electrolytic process is the use of electrolysis industrially to refine metals or compounds at a high purity and low cost. Some examples are the Hall-Héroult process used for aluminium, or the production of hydrogen from water. Electrolysis is usually done in bulk using hundreds of sheets of metal connected to an electric power source. In the production of copper, these pure sheets of copper are used as starter material for the cathodes, and are then lowered into a solution such as copper sulphate with the large anodes that are cast from impure (97% pure) copper. The copper from the anodes are electroplated on to the cathodes, while any impurities settle to the bottom of the tank. This forms cathodes of 99.999% pure copper.
   Measurement of electrolytes is a commonly performed diagnostic procedure, performed via blood testing with ion-selective electrodes or urinalysis by medical technologists. The interpretation of these values is somewhat meaningless without analysis of the clinical history and is often impossible without parallel measurements of renal function. The electrolytes measured most often are sodium and potassium. Chloride levels are rarely measured except for arterial blood gas interpretations, since they are inherently linked to sodium levels. One important test conducted on urine is the specific gravity test to determine the occurrence of an electrolyte imbalance.
  
  Section::::Physiological importance.:Rehydration.
   Section::::History.
   Section::::Faraday's laws of electrolysis.:Second law of electrolysis.
  
  Faraday discovered that when the same amount of current is passed through different electrolytes/elements connected in series, the mass of substance liberated/deposited at the electrodes is directly proportional to their equivalent weight.
  
  Section::::Industrial uses.
  
  BULLET::::- Electrometallurgy is the process of reduction of metals from metallic compounds to obtain the pure form of metal using electrolysis. Aluminium, lithium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and in some cases copper, are produced in this way.
  
  BULLET::::- Production of chlorine and sodium hydroxide
  
  BULLET::::- Production of sodium chlorate and potassium chlorate
   Strong electrolytes conduct electricity "only" when molten or in aqueous solutions.
  
  Strong electrolytes break apart into ions completely.
  
  The stronger an electrolyte the greater the voltage produced when used in a galvanic cell.
  
  Section::::Examples.
  
  Strong Acids
  
  BULLET::::- Perchloric acid HClO
  
  BULLET::::- Hydriodic acid HI
  
  BULLET::::- Hydrobromic acid HBr
  
  BULLET::::- Hydrochloric acid HCl
  
  BULLET::::- Sulfuric acid HSO
  
  BULLET::::- Nitric acid HNO
  
  BULLET::::- Chloric acid HClO
  
  BULLET::::- Bromic acid HBrO
  
  BULLET::::- Perbromic acid HBrO
  
  BULLET::::- Periodic acid HIO
  
  BULLET::::- Fluoroantimonic acid HSbF
  
  BULLET::::- Magic acid FSOHSbF
  
  BULLET::::- Carborane superacid H(CHBCl)
  
  BULLET::::- Fluorosulfuric acid FSOH
  
  BULLET::::- Triflic acid CFSOH
  
  Strong Bases
  