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Electric battery: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Electric battery
In 1749, Benjamin Franklin coined the word battery to describe a set of linked Leyden jar capacitors, borrowing the military term for weapons functioning together to explain how multiplying holding vessels stored a stronger charge. This was not the electrochemical battery we know today, but it established the conceptual framework for combining individual units to create a more powerful source of electricity. The true birth of the electrochemical battery arrived in 1800 when Italian physicist Alessandro Volta constructed the voltaic pile, a stack of copper and zinc plates separated by brine-soaked paper disks. Volta believed his invention was an inexhaustible source of energy and viewed the corrosion at the electrodes as a mere nuisance rather than an unavoidable consequence of operation, a misconception that would not be corrected until Michael Faraday demonstrated the chemical reality in 1834. These early devices were of great value for experimental purposes, leading to the discovery of electromagnetism in 1820, yet they suffered from fluctuating voltages and an inability to provide large currents for sustained periods.
The Practical Revolution
The first practical source of electricity emerged in 1836 with the invention of the Daniell cell by British chemist John Frederic Daniell, which became an industry standard for powering electrical telegraph networks. This cell consisted of a copper pot filled with copper sulfate solution containing an unglazed earthenware container filled with sulfuric acid and a zinc electrode, creating a wet cell that was prone to leakage and spillage if not handled correctly. Many early batteries used fragile glass jars to hold their components, making them dangerous and unsuitable for portable appliances. The invention of dry cell batteries near the end of the nineteenth century replaced the liquid electrolyte with a paste, making portable electrical devices practical for the first time. This transition from wet cells to dry cells allowed batteries to be used in a wide variety of applications, from the A battery that powered filaments in vacuum tube devices to the B battery that provided plate voltage, fundamentally changing how electricity could be transported and used in the modern world.
The Chemistry of Power
Batteries convert chemical energy directly into electrical energy through redox reactions where electrons flow from the negative anode to the positive cathode, creating a potential difference measured in volts. The net electromotive force of a cell is the difference between the reduction potentials of its half-reactions, with the terminal voltage dropping below the open-circuit voltage due to internal resistance during discharge. Different chemistries produce different voltages and energy densities; for instance, alkaline and zinc-carbon cells both have an electromotive force of approximately 1.5 volts, while lithium compounds generate electromotive forces of 3 volts or more due to their high electrochemical potential changes. Almost any liquid or moist object with enough ions to be electrically conductive can serve as an electrolyte, allowing for novelty demonstrations where electrodes made of different metals are inserted into a lemon or potato to generate small amounts of electricity. The voltage developed across a cell's terminals depends on the energy release of the chemical reactions of its electrodes and electrolyte, with the shape of the discharge curve varying according to the chemistry and internal arrangement employed.
Common questions
When did Benjamin Franklin coin the word battery?
Benjamin Franklin coined the word battery in 1749 to describe a set of linked Leyden jar capacitors. He borrowed the military term for weapons functioning together to explain how multiplying holding vessels stored a stronger charge. This was not the electrochemical battery we know today, but it established the conceptual framework for combining individual units to create a more powerful source of electricity.
Who invented the first electrochemical battery and when?
Italian physicist Alessandro Volta constructed the first electrochemical battery, known as the voltaic pile, in 1800. The device was a stack of copper and zinc plates separated by brine-soaked paper disks. Volta believed his invention was an inexhaustible source of energy and viewed the corrosion at the electrodes as a mere nuisance rather than an unavoidable consequence of operation.
What is the difference between wet cells and dry cell batteries?
Wet cells use liquid electrolytes and were prone to leakage and spillage if not handled correctly. Dry cell batteries replaced the liquid electrolyte with a paste near the end of the nineteenth century, making portable electrical devices practical for the first time. This transition allowed batteries to be used in a wide variety of applications, from the A battery that powered filaments in vacuum tube devices to the B battery that provided plate voltage.
How do secondary batteries differ from primary batteries?
Secondary batteries, also known as rechargeable batteries, can be discharged and recharged multiple times by applying an electric current that reverses the chemical reactions that occur during discharge. The oldest form of rechargeable battery is the lead-acid battery, widely used in automotive and boating applications. Modern developments include nickel-cadmium, nickel-metal hydride, and lithium-ion cells, with lithium-ion having by far the highest share of the dry cell rechargeable market.
What are the environmental impacts of battery disposal?
About 179,000 tons of the nearly three billion batteries purchased annually in the United States end up in landfills across the country. Many types of batteries employ toxic materials such as lead, mercury, and cadmium as an electrode or electrolyte, and when each battery reaches end of life it must be disposed of to prevent environmental damage. In 1996, the Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act banned the sale of mercury-containing batteries in the United States, while the European Union's Battery Directive requires all batteries to be marked with the collection symbol and promotes research on improved battery recycling methods.
When was the world's largest battery built and how much electricity can it store?
In 2023, the world's largest battery was built in South Australia by Tesla, capable of storing 129 megawatt-hours of electricity. Another large battery in Hebei Province, China, built in 2013, could store 36 megawatt-hours of electricity at a cost of 500 million dollars. A battery composed of nickel-cadmium cells in Fairbanks, Alaska, covered an area bigger than a football pitch and weighed 1,300 tonnes, manufactured by ABB to provide backup power in the event of a blackout.
Secondary batteries, also known as rechargeable batteries, can be discharged and recharged multiple times by applying an electric current that reverses the chemical reactions that occur during discharge. The oldest form of rechargeable battery is the lead-acid battery, widely used in automotive and boating applications, which contains liquid electrolyte in an unsealed container requiring the battery to be kept upright and the area to be well ventilated to ensure safe dispersal of the hydrogen gas produced during overcharging. Modern developments include nickel-cadmium, nickel-metal hydride, and lithium-ion cells, with lithium-ion having by far the highest share of the dry cell rechargeable market. In 2017, a team led by lithium-ion battery inventor John Goodenough developed a new type of solid-state battery that could lead to safer, faster-charging, longer-lasting rechargeable batteries for handheld mobile devices and electric cars. This technology uses less expensive, earth-friendly materials such as sodium extracted from seawater and has three times the energy density of previous generations, promising to revolutionize energy storage for both consumer electronics and grid-scale applications.
The Scale of Storage
Batteries range from miniature cells used to power hearing aids and wristwatches to huge battery banks the size of rooms that provide standby or emergency power for telephone exchanges and computer data centers. In 2023, the world's largest battery was built in South Australia by Tesla, capable of storing 129 megawatt-hours of electricity, while another large battery in Hebei Province, China, built in 2013, could store 36 megawatt-hours of electricity at a cost of 500 million dollars. A battery composed of nickel-cadmium cells in Fairbanks, Alaska, covered an area bigger than a football pitch and weighed 1,300 tonnes, manufactured by ABB to provide backup power in the event of a blackout. Sodium-sulfur batteries have been used to store wind power, with a 4.4 megawatt-hour battery system that can deliver 11 megawatts for 25 minutes stabilizing the output of the Auwahi wind farm in Hawaii. These grid-scale energy storage systems are important components of smart power supply grids, collecting and storing energy from the grid or a power plant to discharge that energy at a later time to provide electricity or other grid services when needed.
The Hidden Dangers
A battery explosion is generally caused by misuse or malfunction, such as attempting to recharge a primary non-rechargeable battery or creating a short circuit that generates very large currents. When a battery is recharged at an excessive rate, an explosive gas mixture of hydrogen and oxygen may be produced faster than it can escape from within the battery, leading to pressure build-up and eventual bursting of the battery case. In extreme cases, battery chemicals may spray violently from the casing and cause injury, while car batteries are most likely to explode when a short circuit generates very large currents that produce hydrogen, which is very explosive when overcharged. Disposing of a battery via incineration may cause an explosion as steam builds up within the sealed case, and many battery chemicals are corrosive, poisonous, or both, potentially damaging or disabling the equipment that the batteries power if leakage occurs.
The Cost of Consumption
Of the nearly three billion batteries purchased annually in the United States, about 179,000 tons end up in landfills across the country, creating a significant environmental challenge that has led to legislation around electric batteries including safe disposal and recycling. Many types of batteries employ toxic materials such as lead, mercury, and cadmium as an electrode or electrolyte, and when each battery reaches end of life it must be disposed of to prevent environmental damage. Batteries are one form of electronic waste, and recycling services recover toxic substances which can then be used for new batteries. In 1996, the Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act banned the sale of mercury-containing batteries in the United States, while the European Union's Battery Directive requires all batteries to be marked with the collection symbol and promotes research on improved battery recycling methods. On the 9th of December 2022, the European Parliament reached an agreement to force manufacturers to design all electrical appliances sold in the European Union so that consumers can easily remove and replace batteries themselves, starting from 2026.
The Future of Energy
Between 2010 and 2018, battery demand grew by 30 percent annually, reaching a total of 180 gigawatt-hours in 2018, with the growth rate expected to be maintained at an estimated 25 percent, culminating in demand reaching 2,600 gigawatt-hours in 2030. Computational modeling has revolutionized battery materials design, enabling high-throughput screening and atomistic simulations that accelerate the discovery of novel electrolytes and electrodes, moving beyond traditional trial-and-error approaches. In 2024, a prototype battery for electric cars that could charge from 10 percent to 80 percent in five minutes was demonstrated, and a Chinese company claimed that car batteries it had introduced charged 10 percent to 80 percent in 10.5 minutes, the fastest batteries available compared to Tesla's 15 minutes to half-charge. Secondary use of partially depleted batteries can add to the overall utility of electric batteries by reducing energy storage costs and emission impact due to longer service life, with vehicle electric batteries that have their battery capacity reduced to less than 80 percent, usually after 5 to 8 years of service, being repurposed for use in backup supplies or renewable energy storage systems.