Looking Back
Batteries generally have three different parts, The cathode, the electrolytes, and the anode. So knowing this, we knew that we had to make those three different parts for the batteries to work and for the electricity to flow correctly. the way we accomplished this was by using pennies for our anode and cathode. Since newer pennies have a zinc core and a copper skin, we ground one side of the penny down to its zinc core. This created our anode as the copper created the cathode. After this, we cut little cardboard pieces to the same shape as the pennies and soaked them in vinegar, these would act as the electrolytes. After the different pieces were fabricated we then assembled the battery. This was done by placing the copper end of one penny on top of a piece of tinfoil then placing the cardboard on top of that penny. We then stacked another penny copper face down on top of the cardboard. We continued this pattern of penny to cardboard until we had a minimum of at least 6 pennies connected. After this the battery would be ready and we would connect our LED light to check if the battery worked. The lab worked very well as my light lit up. It didn't light up as strong as it possibly could, but it still lit up.
Looking Beyond
The way that electricity works is that when one atom comes in contact with another atom and has electrons to give off. This exchange of electrons is what we know as electricity and we have learned how to use this action to our advantage. Knowing this, we created this with the copper and zinc in our battery.
Looking Inward
My battery indeed worked very well. I believe the reason this happened is because I made sure all my parts are made correctly. I made sure all of the pennies were completely ground down on one side to completely expose the zinc. I also thoroughly soaked the cardboard in the vinegar to make sure it would conduct the electricity correctly. These processes resulted in the creation of a successful battery that worked when connected to an LED
Looking Outward
While doing this project Liam and I worked together. Because grinding the pennies down was such a lengthy task, I would not have been able to do it without his help. We worked well together and created our battery in a timely manner.
Looking Forward
If I were to do this lab again I would do a couple of things to make my results more desirable. One thing I would do would be to add more pennies to the battery. I would do this because the more pennies, the stronger the current flowing through to the LED would be. For this reason, I would add more. I would also then secure my battery unit to the tinfoil better so that it would not fall apart. I would most likely also work with the same person as I know that we work well together and can keep each other focused on the task at hand.
This lab taught me a lot. I learned how to create a battery out of common household items such as pennies and cardboard. This is valuable knowledge as today, practically everything is run by electricity. All in all this lab was a worthwhile experiment to do.