Voltaic Pile, the First Battery

A Voltaic pile, a battery, is built, demonstrated, and its operation explained. Simply placing a think piece of paper that has been soaked in salt water between a disk of copper and aluminum results in a simple battery. By stacking several of these a battery capable of turning on a light emitting diode (LED) is demonstrated.

[@christopherleathers6427]

This is a fantastic video.

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

Thank you!

[@Caesarus2011]

Just to get this things straight: first battery had been done far long ago and it was Bagdad Battery with a ceramic enclosure, and 1 electrode of copper and another one of iron in multiple times distilled water (heavy water). And all the elements sealed with bitum. Any acid like lemon juice or vinegar would make this setup to explode due to hydrogen accumulation and “experts” are misleading saying acid was used to increase the potential. They had only one wire coming out from iron rod placed inside the copper enclosure inside the ceramic recipient and was used with one wire system as per Tesla patent. The opposite electric sign is provided by the ground (earth grounding or air grounding, depending on requirements and/or application). Try to make a little coil of copper wire and iron or aluminium wire coil and one of them with a smaller diameter to fit inside of the other. Place both of them in potable water and you can measure 0.5 V and 5-10 mA per cell. The difference is this cell will provide energy for much longer time and only iron/aluminium will be consumed is it is air sealed and not bitum sealed with heavy water electrolyte, and water need to be added from time to time. Make couple of such cells put them in series/parallel and place a 100 uF electrolitic capacitor across terminals before usage. Enjoy ! Those with high knowledge able to use it at that time were called mages because beyond ordinary people belief they were performing magic (action at distance in magnetic field). What we are seeing now and presented as battery is the way of not producing energy but wasting all the potential and resources with high inefficiency. Fundamental knowledge is perverted by mainstream science in favour of certain benefits for very few individuals and we need to stop this type of brainwashing !

[@delwynjones6408]

Really interesting thank you

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

You are welcome!

[@asdfafafdasfasdfs]

Wouldn't the flow be over too when all the Cl / Na ions are neutralized?

[@syproful]

Good Watch.

[@AMOGHAJAYANTHMK]

Good video

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

AMOGHA JAYANTH MK Thanks!

[@AMOGHAJAYANTHMK]

Michael Melloch :-) . Waiting for your next video. Upload it 🔜!

[@iresl77]

thank you very much. you can do it. keep it up. hey can you do the simple cell experiment.

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

What do you mean by the "simple cell experiment?"

[@iresl77]

@@electricandmagneticfields2314 it means dipping copper and sinc sheets to a dilute sulphuric acid. that is the simple cell

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

@@iresl77 Got it

[@bmzaron713]

Can you help me? I've hooked up six of these 2.8ish volt piles in parrallel and the led glows nicely.. I measure the milliamps and it only measures like .750 or so on the milliamp scale of my multimeter.. I think I am getting 7.50 milliamps since the led is rated for like 20milliamps.. Is there any help you can give me? Am I not dialed in on the right setting or something?

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

Sorry, I'm not sure why your meter is showing such a low current. Is the ammeter in series with the glowing LED?

[@bmzaron713]

@@electricandmagneticfields2314 Hey thanks for the reply.. No I actually just removed the led and then hooked up the meter, so it was the only thing in the circuit.. It's cool. I just really like to know the readings and something seems off with this.. Voltage is accurate. Idk about this current. I was hoping you would have measured current so I could compare but anyways this video is really cool, thanks for sharing

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

@@bmzaron713 I've never measured the current. I am going to demo this in class in about a week and I will measure the current.

[@bmzaron713]

That would be awesome, thanks! Please post a picture/ video of the multimeter reading if you can.. Not that it matters but I said earlier it might be the dial setting I'm on but I only have one possible milliamp setting so that's not the issue. Thanks again

[@jeremycole3008]

whats the internal resistance?

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

I didn't measure the internal resistance. It was probably higher than expected as I am not sure how uniform each of the individual stacks were.

[@johnmete8015]

why is there an 'continuous flow of electricity' within the voltaic cell/pile ????? it was a good watch

[@electricandmagneticfields2314]

+john mete When you connect two different metals together, like aluminum and copper, there is a flow of electrons from the aluminum to the copper because of their different electrochemical potentials. But this flow will stop as the two metals charge, equilibrate and acquire the same electrochemical potential. To get continuous flow, another connection has to be made between the two metals. In the video this second connection is done with a piece of paper soaked in salt water. Now as electrons are transferred from the aluminum to the copper through the load, the LED in the video, a positive charge does not build up on the aluminum because Al ions move into the salt solution in the cardboard removing the positive charge from the aluminum. Similarly at the copper electrode the negative charge is removed by electrons moving into the salt solution. So electrons can continuously flow from the aluminum, though the LED, and into the copper.

[@billbrown994]

Why did it take 6 years to make a pile? ;)

[@Jkauppa]

put just a semiconductor, like CuO, Copper-2-oxide, between the dissimilar electrodes

[@Jkauppa]

like Znc-CuO-Cu, M-I-M, much like P-I-N in semiconductors, the charge transfer and electric field should still be there, through the semiconductor, is there an electric field between the electrodes with air gap or air electrolyte, should be

[@Jkauppa]

between two dissimilar (battery electrode) metals there should be a static (non-flow non-changing) electric field according to the voltage difference of the electrode materials

[@Jkauppa]

water salt electrolyte will still have the voltage difference over it, otherwise there would be no ion flow to balance the chemical potential

[@Jkauppa]

get your theory straight, Chicken was before the egg, voltage makes things roll, voltage potential of the electrodes, you can say the electrodes are at the voltage potential the material gives them

[@Jkauppa]

you have the full picture if you remove the electrolyte from the considerations, either vacuum-air gap or direct contact