Battery development dates as far back as the late 18th century. The cause was championed by the work carried out by Luigi Galvani from 1780 to 1786. Through his experiments Galvani observed that, when connected pieces of iron and brass were applied to frog’s legs, they caused them to twitch. However, Galvani thought that the effect originated in the leg tissue. Nevertheless, Galvani had laid the cornerstone for further developments in "voltaic" electricity.
From 1796 - 1799, Alessandro Volta experimented with zinc and silver plates to produce electric currents at the Pavia University. Volta stacked the two to form a "pile", the first "dry" battery. By 1800 Volta had created the "crown of cups", a modified arrangement of zinc and silver discs dipped in a salt solution.
In the years that ensued, other means of producing electricity were invented, all of which involved the use of liquid electrodes. Those developed by Bunsen (1842) and Grove (1839) were amongst the most successful systems, and, were used for many years.
By 1866, Georges Leclanche, a French engineer, patented a new system, which was immediately successful. In the space of two years, twenty thousand of his cells were being used in the telegraph system. Leclanche's original cell was assembled in a porous pot. The positive electrode consisted of crushed manganese dioxide with a little carbon mixed in. The negative pole was a zinc rod. The cathode was packed into the pot, and a carbon rod was inserted to act as a currency collector. The anode or zinc rod and the pot were then immersed in an ammonium chloride solution. The liquid acted as the electrolyte, readily seeping through the porous cup and making contact with the cathode material. Leclanche's "wet"cell (as it was popularly referred to) became the forerunner to the world's first widely used battery, the zinc carbon cell.
Leclanche's invention, which was quite heavy and prone to breakage, was steadily improved over the years. The idea of encapsulating both the negative electrode and porous pot into a zinc cup was first patented by J.A. Thiebaut in 1881. But, it was Carl Gassner of Mainz who is credited as constructing the first commercially successful "dry" cell. Variations followed. By 1889 there were at least six well-known dry batteries in circulation. Later battery manufacturing produced smaller, lighter batteries, and the application of the tungsten filament in 1909 created the impetus to develop batteries for use in torches.
The production of batteries was greatly increased during the First World War as a means of powering torches, field radios. Other milestones in battery production include the widespread radio broadcasting, which brought battery-operated wireless into the heart of many homes. But, it was during the inter-war years that battery performance was greatly enhanced. This was achieved through better selection of materials and methods of manufacture.
Batteries have now become an essential part of everyday life. They are the power source for millions of consumer, business, medical, military and industrial appliances worldwide. This demand is growing.
2007-04-15 02:21:39
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answer #1
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answered by Eden* 7
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@ Billgun, you're an fool. the place does electrical energy come from? around u.s., the vast majority of electrical energy comes from the burning of fossil fuels. Do your learn until eventually now posting blatant lies with out aspects. As for the question, it seems such as you have have been given a great define. you're a sensible toddler, and that i'm beneficial you would be waiting to discover aspects and articles aplenty. i'd understand, because of the fact that i presently did a learn paper on a matching venture. pass get 'em, and ignore appropriate to the trolls right here.
2016-10-03 00:40:16
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answer #2
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answered by linnon 4
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In science and technology, a battery is a device that stores chemical energy and makes it available in an electrical form. Batteries consist of electrochemical devices such as two or more galvanic cells, electrolytic cells, fuel cells, or flow cells.[1] The modern development of batteries started with the Voltaic pile, invented by the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta in 1800.[2] According to a 2005 estimate, the worldwide battery industry generates US$48 billion in sales annually. [3]
Formally, an electrical "battery" is an interconnected array of similar voltaic cells ("cells"). However, in many contexts it is common to call a single cell used on its own a battery.[4]
The earliest known artifacts that may have served as batteries are the Baghdad Batteries, which existed some time between 250 BC and 640 AD. However, it is not known what electrical function they may have served, and if they were in fact batteries at all. Scientists have developed several theories about its use, including medicine (as a painkiller) and electroplating jewelry.[5]
The story of the modern battery begins in the 1780s with the discovery of "animal electricity" by Luigi Galvani, which he published in 1791.[6] He created an electric circuit consisting of two different metals, with one touching the frog's leg and the other touching both the leg and the first metal, thus closing the circuit. In modern terms, the frog's leg served as both electrolyte and detector, and the metals served as electrodes. He noticed that even though the frog was dead, its legs would twitch when he touched them with the metals.[7]
By 1791, Alessandro Volta realized that the frog could be replaced by cardboard soaked in salt water, employing another form of detection. Having already studied the electrostatic phenomenon of capacitance, Volta was able to quantitatively measure the electromotive force (emf) associated with each electrode-electrolyte interface (voltage) in volts, which were named after him. Such a device is called a voltaic cell, or cell for short. In 1799, Volta invented the modern battery by placing many galvanic cells in series, literally piling them one above the other. This Voltaic Pile gave a greatly enhanced net emf for the combination,[8] with a voltage of about 50 volts for a 32-cell pile.[9] (In fact, in many parts of Europe, batteries are called piles.) Later, researchers placed galvanic cells in parallel. Such banks of cells are called batteries, presumably after the earlier use by Benjamin Franklin to describe Leyden jars (capacitors) in series and in parallel.[10]
Although early batteries were of great value for experimental purposes, their limitations made them impractical for large current drain. Later, batteries, starting with the Daniell cell in 1836, provided more reliable currents and were adopted by industry for use in stationary devices, particularly in telegraph networks where they were the only practical source of electricity, since electrical distribution networks did not exist then.[11] These wet cells used liquid electrolytes, which were prone to leaks and spillage if not handled correctly. Many used glass jars to hold their components, which made them fragile. These characteristics made wet cells unsuitable for portable appliances. Near the end of the 19th century, the invention of dry cell batteries, which replaced liquid electrolyte with a paste made portable electrical devices practical.
HOPE THAT HELPS
2007-04-15 02:11:05
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answer #3
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answered by mshaw70123 2
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Then do some research and take notes. THEN write your paper. Further, you have NOT posed a question here. What are you asking??
Chow!!
2007-04-15 02:44:41
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answer #4
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answered by No one 7
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2007-04-15 02:20:04
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answer #5
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answered by Anonymous
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