Essay 1

Evolution of batteries

Introduction:

The main purpose of batteries is to generate electrical energy.  From about the end of the 19^th century, batteries were the most important source of electricity.

Early history:

In 1749 Benjamin Franklin, used the word battery to express a group of connected capacitors for an experience with electricity. In 1780, Luigi Galvani was doing an experiment on a frog. The frog's leg moved when he touched it with a scalpel. Galvani thought the energy that caused the movement came from the leg. Alessandro Volta, a scientist, didn’t agree with Luigi Galvani results, putting in his mind that the incident caused by two different metals combined together a moist intermediary. The Voltaic Pile is an invention that was invented in 1800 by Alessandro Volta. The material that used to make the Voltaic Pile was discs of zinc and copper and it produce a current of electricity.

Development:

The Voltaic Pile was not able to transport an electrical current for a long time because of the trouble with the hydrogen bubble that found in the Voltaic Pile. The person who invented was John F. Daniell. The Daniell Cell worked for a longer time than the Volta pile. This battery, produced around 1.1 volts, was used to power devices. In 1838 William Robert Grove a lawyer who turned  into a scientist , improved the wet cell battery and named it the Grove cell , he used a platinum electrode held in nitric acid and a zinc electrode in zinc sulfate to create around 12 amps of current at around 1.8 volts . He also invented the first fuel cell, it worked by joining hydrogen and oxygen. The person who invented the first rechargeable battery was Gaston Plante and it was a lead acid battery. Plante designed the battery to store electrical energy. It was first place to use to keep the lights on in railroad cars stopped at train stations and given standby power for utilities. In 1866 Georges invented the first wet cell using crashed manganese dioxide mixed with a little carbon as the positive electrode and a zinc rod as the negative pole. The dry cell batteries were successful until 1881 when Carl Gassner invented the first one. Waldemar Jungner invented a battery better than the lead acid batteries in 1899 and it used alkaline electrolyte but it was more expensive. Thomas Alva Edison developed the alkaline battery into a storage battery. It worked by nickelic oxide and iron.

Nowadays and in the future:

In the last resent years, scientist invented batteries recharge in less time. The sugar battery is a battery works by organic materials like apple and soda noncarbonated. "Recent breakthroughs in battery technology have put us on a track that sounded ridiculous ten years ago: creating batteries out of organic and biodegradable materials that last longer than metallic batteries and can recharge in no time."(Lisa, Z.2010). A group of scientist in Korea developed a fast charge lithium-ion battery that can recharge to 120 times faster than conventional li-ion batteries. In Israel they developed a battery has the ability to be printed on paper.

Conclusion:

The first battery invented because Volta did not agree with Galvani theory. Batteries developed because it did not last for a long time .Then they invented rechargeable batteries. In the recent years they improved every battery so that it work for much longer time and it recharge in less time. In the future batteries might not be the main source of transportable energy.

 

Words count: 570

 

 

 

 

 

References

Anthony, S. (2012, August 17). Scientists develop lithium-ion battery that charges 120 times faster than normal | ExtremeTech. Latest Technology News | Tech Blog | ExtremeTech. Retrieved April 30, 2013, from http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/134635-scientists-develop-lithium-ion-battery-that-charges-120-times-faster-than-normal

Bellis, M. (n.d.). History of the Battery. Inventors. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://inventors.about.com/od/bstartinventions/a/History-Of-The-Battery.htm

Fuel Cells: Discovering the Science. (n.d.). Home | National Museum of American History. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://americanhistory.si.edu/fuelcells/origins/origins.htm

History of the battery - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (2013, March 18). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_battery

Lead-Acid Battery Info. (n.d.). Lead-Acid Battery Info. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://www.leadacidbatteryinfo.org/resources.htm

Lisa, Z. (2010, June 7). Ezproxy Login. Ezproxy Login. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.hct.ac.ae/docview/203738232/13DA23A3C9930D35397/8?accountid=1215

Timeline of Batteries . (n.d.). ThinkQuest : Library. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://library.thinkquest.org/04apr/00215/applications/personal/timeline%20of%20batteries/battery_timeline.htm

 

 

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