| Materials: | A lemon (Or lemon juice), zinc (Something galvanised, like a nail) & copper (Electrical Wire or water pipe) |
| Instructions: | Stick a piece of zinc and a piece of copper into a lemon and it will produce electrical current. Actually it's the juice of the lemon that does all the work, so a cup of lemon juice instead of a lemon will work more efficiently. This is what's known as a 'Primary cell battery' and will produce approximately 1 - 1.5 Volts. The more the amount of zinc, copper and lemon juice you have, the more current will be available, but if you want a higher Voltage you will have to make 2 cells and connect them in series as shown in the second part of the animation. |
| Hints: | This type of battery, as with those
in the shops convert chemical energy into electrical energy. The
copper and zinc rods are called 'Electrodes'. The lemon juice is
called an 'Electrolyte' which is an ionic conductor. One of the
electrodes will react, producing electrons, while the other will
accept electrons. Hence the electricity or electrons will flow between
the copper and zinc but, only if there is a load connected. (The
bulb) |
