TED Talk
How batteries work ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OVtk6G2TnQ
If you’ve ever used a flashlight, or changed the channel with a remote control, if
you’ve ever recharged your electric car, or if you’re reading this on a smart device,
then you know how useful batteries can be. But how do batteries work?
In this TED Ed by Adam Jacobson, we travel back to the late 1800s where a
professional disagreement between Luigi Galvani and Alessandro Volta eventually led
Volta to invent an early version of an electric battery.
Today you might know Volta’s name from the words volt and voltage. Galvani is also
honored for his contributions.
Batteries are a triumph of science. They allow smartphones and other technologies to exist
without power cables. Yet even the best batteries will diminish daily, slowly losing capacity
until they finally die. Why does this happen, and how do our batteries even store so much
charge in the first place?
Scientists in the 1700's were aware of electricity, but they were not sure _____
How to observe it in experiments
What caused electric current to flow
Whether electricity had any effect on living organisms
If electricity would flow through metal
Oxidation and reduction are processes through which _____
Electricity is created from solar energy
Substances lose and gain electrons
A substance changes from one metal into another
Gas molecules are converted to solid metal
Rechargeable batteries are different than standard batteries because _____.
Their oxidation-reduction reactions are reversible
They can be reused indefinitely
They rely on moving protons instead of moving electrons
They rely on oxidation, but not reduction
Rechargeable batteries can no longer function when _____.
They are unplugged from a wall charger
They have been recharged 10 times
The temperature is too low
Changes to their surfaces prevent electrons from flowing
Batteries enable us to _____.
Store electric charge in a portable way
Always stay connected to the power grid
Create electrical energy
Convert solar energy into electrical energy
Why do rechargeable batteries eventually lose their ability to be recharged ?