What does the nitrate do in a concentration cell?

[Skyllar Kuppinger 1F]

What is the point of the nitrate in this concentration cell?? (Image attached)What does it do? Does it keep the solution neutral? If so how?

[Vicki Liu 2L]

I believe nitrate is a spectator ion in this case. In other words, AgNO3 was dissolved to achieve Ag+ ions in solution but the NO3- is not involved in the actual reaction.

[sarahforman_Dis2I]

What is the point of the nitrate in this concentration cell?? (Image attached)What does it do? Does it keep the solution neutral? If so how?

I believe that the nitrate keeps the solution neutral though balancing out the Ag+ ions. That is why there is a porous disk, think of it as a form of salt bridge, in that it allows for ions to move to balance charge. I hope this helps!

[CosetteBackus_4F]

While the nitrate is not necessarily involved in the reaction itself, its purpose, like the salt bridge, is to allow ions to flow so that the charge can balance.

[Abhi Vempati 2H]

Like everyone is saying, nitrate diffuses through the porous disk to balance the charges on both sides. The actual reaction that is occurring is for Ag⁺(aq) and Ag(s), but NO₃^- is important for the concentration cell as well.

[Angela Patel 2J]

You can't just put gold ions in solution, you need it to be dissolved from another compound.

[Naneeta Desar 1K]

In order to balance the charges nitrate flows through the porous disk.