You can make a simple battery with some pennies and circles of aluminum foil and wet paper towels (soaked in a salt water solution - try one teaspoon salt to 6 oz. tap water) that are the same size as the pennies. You will also need insulated wire. (Adult supervision recommended.)
1. Make your battery by stacking 12 "cells" against each other, each cell made up of one penny, one wet paper towel circle, and one foil circle in that order.
2. Wrap a 8-10" piece of insulated wire with stripped ends around the battery once and twist the ends together against the battery so that the wire holds the cells together.
3. Next, touch the bare ends of the wire to each end of the battery. If you're in a dark room, you might see a spark as your battery produces an electric current. Another way to test the battery is with a voltage meter or multimeter.
Note that U.S. pennies made before 1982 are 95% copper, but newer pennies only have a 2.5% copper coating. For further experimentation, compare the electric current when you make a battery using only older pennies and one using only newer pennies. You could also experiment with a stronger salt water solution or plain tap water.
1. Make your battery by stacking 12 "cells" against each other, each cell made up of one penny, one wet paper towel circle, and one foil circle in that order.
2. Wrap a 8-10" piece of insulated wire with stripped ends around the battery once and twist the ends together against the battery so that the wire holds the cells together.
3. Next, touch the bare ends of the wire to each end of the battery. If you're in a dark room, you might see a spark as your battery produces an electric current. Another way to test the battery is with a voltage meter or multimeter.
Note that U.S. pennies made before 1982 are 95% copper, but newer pennies only have a 2.5% copper coating. For further experimentation, compare the electric current when you make a battery using only older pennies and one using only newer pennies. You could also experiment with a stronger salt water solution or plain tap water.
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