(EP515984-A1)      An electrolytic cell contains (A) a solid electrode and (B) as counter electrode a porous multilayer arrangement comprising (1) a gas permeable backing layer made of graphite paper, overlaid by (b) a C layer contg. a sufficiently high water repellant binder content to prevent water reaching (a) and (c) another C layer contg. less of the water repellent binder than (b).    Layers (b) and (c) are permeated with a finely divided catalyst and are impregnated with an aq. basic soln.. The cell contains a separator made of an insulating material, is contiguous with at least one of the electrodes and is impregnated with the aq. basic soln. An electrochemical reaction is initiated by applying a direct potential between the electrodes.    Layer (Bb) pref. contains 25-35 wt.% binder and (Bc) 10-18wt.% binder. The electrodes and the separator are flat and the separator has a larger area than the electrodes. The separator consists of a ceramic material. The solid electrode contains Ag or Ni. The aq. soln. is a KOH soln.. The binder is PTFE, polypropylene or polyethylene. The catalyst is Pt or Pd.    ADVANTAGE -   The cell has a high response rate and allows application of higher displacement forces than previously.    (EP515984-B1)      Electrochemical actuator with a closed gas chamber and at least one cell with at least two electrodes, of which one is an electrochemically reversible and oxidisable solid body electrode and at least one other serves as counterelectrode, wherein a pressure build-up or a pressure decay is caused in the gas chamber by an electrochemical reaction course caused by a direct current, characterised thereby, that the counterelectrode to the solid body electrode (10) is a porous multilayer electrode, that it comprises a gas-permeable back layer (14) of graphite paper, a first carbon layer (15) arranged thereover and with such a high proportion of a water-repellant binding agent that no water gets through this carbon layer (15) to the back layer (14), and finally a second carbon layer (16) disposed thereover and with a lower proportion of the water-repellent binding agent, that the carbon layers are interspersed with a finely distributed catalyst and contain an aqueous basic solution, that the cell displays at least one separator (9), which is of insulating material and impregnated with the aqueous basic solution and which lies against the solid body electrode (10) on the one hand and the second carbon layer (16) of the multilayer electrode on the other hand and that a direct voltage is applied between the solid body electrode (10) and the multilayer electrode, which is separated therefrom by the separator (9), for the course of the electrochemical reactions.