Dry Cell Battery Essay

BATTERIES

There are many kinds of batteries which consist of different materials in order to produce an electric charge. Here are some of the most common batteries, what they consist of and how they work.

Bichromate Cell (see picture # 1)

A battery is a device which converts chemical energy into electrical energy. A battery usually consists of two or more cells connected in series or parallel, you can also have a single cell battery. All cells consist of a positive electrode, and a negative electrode. An electrolyte is a liquid substance capable of conducting electricity. In this substance one of the electrodes will react producing electrons, while the other will except electrons. When the electrodes are connected to a device to be powered,

The most common form of a primary cell is the Leclanche cell, invented by a French chemist Georges Leclanche in the 1860s. The electrolyte for this battery consisted of a mixture of ammonium chloride and zinc chloride made into a paste. The negative electrode is zinc, and is the outside shell of the cell, and the positive electrode is a carbon rod that runs through the center of the cell. This rod is surrounded by a mixture of carbon and manganese dioxide. This battery produces about 1.5 volts.

Another widely used primary cell is the zinc-mercuric-oxide cell, more commonly called a mercury battery. It can be made in the shape of a small flat disk and is used in this form in hearing aids, and electric wristwatches. The negative electrode consists of zinc, the positive electrode is of mercuric oxide, and the electrolyte is a solution of potassium hydroxide. The mercury battery produces about 1.34 volts.

The fuel cell is another type of primary cell. It is unique in that the chemicals aren't contained within the cell but are supplied from outside of the

The storage battery or secondary cell, which can be recharged by reversing the chemical reaction, was invented in 1859 by a French physicist named Gaston Plante. His cell was a lead-acid battery, the type widely used today. The lead-acid battery commonly consists of three or six cells. Its chief advantage is that it can deliver a strong current of electricity for starting an engine; however, it runs down quickly. The electrolyte is a diluted solution of sulfuric acid. The negative electrode consists of lead, and the positive electrode of lead dioxide. In operation, the negative lead electron breaks into free electrons and positive lead ions. The electrons travel through the external electric circuit, and the positive lead ions combine with the sulfate ions in the electrolyte to form lead sulfate. When the electrons reenter the cell at the positive lead-dioxide electrode, then another chemical reaction occurs. The lead dioxide combines with the hydrogen ions in the electrolyte in with the returning electrons to form water, releasing lead ions in the electrolyte to form additional lead