Science+Fair+GA2

My project is to put a galvanized nail and a copper penny in a potato, lemon, and onion to create an electrical current witch I will measure with a volt meter.



Hypothesis: If zinc and copper are put into an acid then a chemical reaction occurs and an electrical current is formed.The amount of voltage will vary between each vegetable. I think a lemon will conduct the most because of its acids.

Purpose: The purpose is to make electricity with a potato, lemon, and an onion.

The galvanized nail (zinc coated) gives up electrons therefore it is the anode and the copper wants the electrons more therefore it is the cathode. The acid in the lemon/ potato/ onion takes the electrons from the zinc because of oxidation. So, the electricity does not come from the lemon, but a chemical reaction between the acids and the metals.

Source 1 http://www.magnet.fsu.edu/education/tutorials/java/electricalcell/index.html This website is reliable because actual collage students made it.
 * Sources**
 * The sulfuric acid diluted in water breaks down into positive hydrogen ions and negative sulfate ions
 * Zinc molecules, after each losing two electrons that get drawn into the wire, become positive ions that dissolve in the acid by joining with the negative sulfate ions; in other words, the zinc corrodes.
 * The zinc ions also work to repel the hydrogen ions toward the copper, where they become attached to the incoming electrons and form molecules of hydrogen gas on the surface of the copper. This build-up interferes with the conduction of electricity (this is called polarization) and can stop the flow entirely, if the zinc doesn't corrode away or the solution get used up first.

Source 2 [] This site is reliable because the website Howstuffworks (which seems very popular and is referred to alot, and there seems to not be any bad things about it.)referred to it.
 * zinc is an active metal and will react readily with acid; acid's active ingredient is positively-charged hydrogen.
 * There is no electricity in the vegetable.

Source 3 [] This site is reliable because this site hires professionals to answer questions. > Source 4 [] This site is reliable because its is a commonly used online dictionary.
 * Lemons have more citric acid therefore the electricity will be stronger.
 * Oxidation: A reaction in which the atoms in an element lose electrons and the valence of the element is correspondingly increased.
 * Ion: An atom or a group of atoms that has acquired a net electric charge by gaining or losing one or more electrons.
 * Electron: A stable subatomic particle in the lepton family having a rest mass of 9.1066 × 10-28 grams and a unit negative electric charge of approximately 1.602 × 10-19 coulombs.
 * Electricity: The physical phenomena arising from the behavior of electrons and protons that is caused by the attraction of particles with opposite charges and the repulsion of particles with the same charge.

Source 5 [] This site is reliable because an electrical engineer made it.
 * Electricity is a mysterious incomprehensible entity which is invisible and visible, both at the same time.
 * Electricity is both matter and energy.
 * Electricity is a type of low-frequency radio wave which is made of protons.
 * It moves forward at the speed of light yet it sits and vibrates in the AC cord without flowing forwards at all.
 * It's totally weightless, yet it has a small weight.
 * When electricity flows through a light bulb's filament, it gets changed entirely into light.
 * not one bit of electricity is ever used up by the light bulb, and every last bit flows out of the filament and back down the other wire.
 * College textbooks are full of electricity, yet they have no electric charge!
 * Electricity is a class of phenomena which can be stored in batteries!
 * If you want to measure a quantity of electricity, you use watts and volts.

Source 6 McGraw-Hill Science. Science textbook This book is reliable because it is used as a textbook in schools.
 * Energy is what is used to power activities.

= Works Cited = Beaty, William J. "What Is "Electricity"?" //What Is Electricity?// N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2013. .
 * This site is reliable because an electrical engineer made it.

"Dictonary." //The Free Dictionary//. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. .
 * This site is reliable because its is a commonly used online dictionary.

Drive, Paul Dirac. "Related Electricity & Magnetism Pages." //MagLab//. Florida State University, n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. .
 * This website is reliable because actual collage students made it.

"Food Batteries." //Food Batteries//. MadSci. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. .
 * This site is reliable because the website Howstuffworks (which seems very popular and is referred to alot, and there seems to not be any bad things about it.)referred to it.

Moyer, Richard R. "Physical Science." McGraw-Hill Science. New York: McGraw-Hill School Division, 2000. N. pag. Print. Topic 6 unit 1
 * This book is reliable because it is used as a textbook in schools.

"Which Fruit or Vegetable Conducts Electricity the Best?" Ask.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. .
 * This site is reliable because this site hires professionals to answer questions.