Fruit battery research

By: Emmanuel Okello

Abstract

What I am going to do in my
experiment is that I will see how
citrus fruit can make a light
bulb/motor work.
 Hypothesis
In my science fair project, I will make a fruit battery. I
am going to see how a citrus fruit can make electricity.

Introduction
Chemical energy stored in different substances can be converted to
electrical energy. This ability is the foundation of design of all batteries. Each
battery has two poles usually made of two different metals. One pole is the
positive pole and the other is the negative pole. Electrons can travel from the
negative pole to the positive pole via a conductor such as a wire. A flow of
electrons in a conductor is called electricity and if large enough, it can be used to
make an electro magnet, light up a light bulb, or run an electric motor. Inside each
battery there are chemicals that cause such chemical reactions. These chemicals in
general are called electrolytes. This activity will investigate whether fruits and
fruit juices can be used as electrolytes to make batteries. Zinc and copper will be
used as the electrodes.
The chemistry behind the fruit
cell is as follows: zinc is an active
metal and will react readily with
an acid. acid's active ingredient is
positively-charged hydrogen so a
transfer of electrons takes place
between the zinc and the acid; the
zinc (Zn0) is oxidized to Zn++ and
the acid (H+) is reduced to
 hydrogen gas (H2), which you can see bubbling out around the electrodes.

Materials
 citrus fruit (e.g., lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit)
 copper nail, screw or wire (about 2" or 5 cm long)
 zinc nail or screw or galvanized nail (about 2" or 5 cm long)
 light bulbs with 2" or 5 cm leads (enough wire to connect it to the
nails)

Procedures
1. Set the fruit on a table and gently roll in around to soften it up. You
want the juice to be flowing inside the fruit without breaking its skin.
Alternatively, you can squeeze the fruit with your hands.

2. Insert the zinc and copper nails into the fruit so that they are about
2" or 5 cm apart. You don't want them to be touching each other. Avoid
puncturing through the end of the fruit.

3. Remove enough insulation from the leads of the light (about 1") so
that you can wrap one lead around the zinc nail and one lead around the
copper nail. If you like, you can use electrical tape or alligator clips to
keep the wire from falling off the nails.

4. When you connect the second nail, the light will turn on.
 Questions

 What is the difference between

normal fruits and citrus?
 What is in the citrus fruit?

Variables
Independent variable: The fruits.

Dependent variables: how much electricity the fruits

make.

Controlled variable: The wires, the nails,