Build-A-penny battery Lab
Battery Lab:
Order: Foil (only at the bottom of the pile) and then Penny, Zinc, & Cardboard (this repeats itself and is regarded as a stack)
At 3 stacks the small LED didn't light up
At 4 stacks it shows up a dim light.
At 5 stacks it lights up again slightly, (small LED) the bigger LED lights up the same as the smaller one.
At 6 stacks: Big LED slightly lights up and the smaller LED lights up.
Putting both the big LED and the small LED (at 6 stacks) the smaller one is brighter. (we put the smaller one first)
At 7 stacks the big one lights up roughly.
At 8 stacks the big one lights up slightly brighter.
Positive leg has to be on the cardboard & the negative leg has to be on the foil.
Order: Foil (only at the bottom of the pile) and then Penny, Zinc, & Cardboard (this repeats itself and is regarded as a stack)
At 3 stacks the small LED didn't light up
At 4 stacks it shows up a dim light.
At 5 stacks it lights up again slightly, (small LED) the bigger LED lights up the same as the smaller one.
At 6 stacks: Big LED slightly lights up and the smaller LED lights up.
Putting both the big LED and the small LED (at 6 stacks) the smaller one is brighter. (we put the smaller one first)
At 7 stacks the big one lights up roughly.
At 8 stacks the big one lights up slightly brighter.
Positive leg has to be on the cardboard & the negative leg has to be on the foil.
Post Lab Questions
1.) What were the metals involved in your battery?
Aluminum, Zinc, and Copper
2.) If your LED requires 1.5 volts to light up, how many volts did each cell of your batter provide? (A cell is defined as a group of penny, zinc washer, and cardboard)
Each 'cell' contains 0.3 volts, to make the large LED shine fairly well, it would take 8 cells to do so, as it would take 6 cells to light up the small LED light.
3.) How is energy being converted to electricity in this battery?
Chemical energy is created from the two metals interacting with the acid to create electrical energy. The metal surface is the electrode and an electric current is made when the metal surfaces come into contact with one another (aluminum to copper to zinc).
4.) What is a voltaic pile? How is it related to the battery you just built?
A voltaic pile is a battery consisting of voltaic cells arranged in a series. It is composed of an electrode, which is a strip of metal within a solution and helps to bridge a pathway for the closed circuit. This is similar to the battery that we created because we had several ‘cells’ on top of each other to create a higher charge as to light the LED light, and the electrodes that we used would be the zinc washer, or the half sanded penny, with the zinc insides touching the acid soaked cardboard.
5.) What is an electrolyte?
An electrolyte is a substance that can conduct electric currents due to the ions which move around, and can be released at the cathodes or anodes of an electric circuit. The more commonly used electrolytes are acids, bases, and salts, which ionize when dissolved in solvents.
6.) How did you know which end of the battery was positive, and which end was negative? (let’s refer to the end with the foil as the bottom)
The positive side of the battery was the bottom (the foil) and the negative end was the top (the cardboard). We were able to make this conclusion because the LED lights have two legs, one which is positive, the long one, and one which is negative, the short one. To make a circuit work, we need to keep in contact the opposite sides to continue the closed circuit, and when we tried the positive side with the foil, the LED light wouldn't light. Thus we were able to conclude the results above.
7.) Determine at least two other potential uses for your battery other than lighting an LED. What else could your battery power?
If one has enough pennies, zinc washers, and acid soaked cardboard, anything is possible, from working a clock to lighting a house. (that would be a lot of pennies though)
1.) What were the metals involved in your battery?
Aluminum, Zinc, and Copper
2.) If your LED requires 1.5 volts to light up, how many volts did each cell of your batter provide? (A cell is defined as a group of penny, zinc washer, and cardboard)
Each 'cell' contains 0.3 volts, to make the large LED shine fairly well, it would take 8 cells to do so, as it would take 6 cells to light up the small LED light.
3.) How is energy being converted to electricity in this battery?
Chemical energy is created from the two metals interacting with the acid to create electrical energy. The metal surface is the electrode and an electric current is made when the metal surfaces come into contact with one another (aluminum to copper to zinc).
4.) What is a voltaic pile? How is it related to the battery you just built?
A voltaic pile is a battery consisting of voltaic cells arranged in a series. It is composed of an electrode, which is a strip of metal within a solution and helps to bridge a pathway for the closed circuit. This is similar to the battery that we created because we had several ‘cells’ on top of each other to create a higher charge as to light the LED light, and the electrodes that we used would be the zinc washer, or the half sanded penny, with the zinc insides touching the acid soaked cardboard.
5.) What is an electrolyte?
An electrolyte is a substance that can conduct electric currents due to the ions which move around, and can be released at the cathodes or anodes of an electric circuit. The more commonly used electrolytes are acids, bases, and salts, which ionize when dissolved in solvents.
6.) How did you know which end of the battery was positive, and which end was negative? (let’s refer to the end with the foil as the bottom)
The positive side of the battery was the bottom (the foil) and the negative end was the top (the cardboard). We were able to make this conclusion because the LED lights have two legs, one which is positive, the long one, and one which is negative, the short one. To make a circuit work, we need to keep in contact the opposite sides to continue the closed circuit, and when we tried the positive side with the foil, the LED light wouldn't light. Thus we were able to conclude the results above.
7.) Determine at least two other potential uses for your battery other than lighting an LED. What else could your battery power?
If one has enough pennies, zinc washers, and acid soaked cardboard, anything is possible, from working a clock to lighting a house. (that would be a lot of pennies though)