Lexi S.P.

3° chemistry
3/15/19

Proof of Efficacy Document

Our Device:
● We used lemon batteries to convert chemical energy to electrical energy to light
an LED. We used 3 lemons cut into quarters, so we had had 12 lemon slices with
one copper electrode and one magnesium electrode. When the magnesium
reacted with the citric acid inside the lemon an oxidation reaction happened. 2
electrons were stripped from the magnesium and left in the electrode to travel
through a wire to the LED and then to the copper conductor. The copper
performed a reduction reaction by accepting the electrons sent to it from the
magnesium. Our device isn't perfect so some energy was lost to heat and to
hydrogen gas because when the magnesium reacts with the citric acid electrons
on the surface of the electrode pair with hydrogen ions from the citric acid to form
hydrogen gas.

Modification made to Device:

● Our Goal changed to lighting a light bulb due to lack of results from tests of trying
to light a fire using our lemon batteries.
● We used Magnesium rather than zinc due to its higher reactivity when compared
with copper.
● We only used 2(one Magnesium and one copper) nodes in each lemon because
we tested more vs less and the lemons with less nodes produced more
 electricity, maybe due to less resistance.
● We used 3 lemons split into quarters, 12 slices, because more lemons= more
power and when we noticed a lemon split into quarters produced more electricity
than 1 lemon whole. This is likely due increasing the number of cells leading to
more isolated reactions producing power, leading to more electricity.

Key concept:

● Electrolyte: a chemical compound that dissociates into ions making it capable of

transporting an electric charge, through the movement of ions. In our device the
electrolyte is the citric acid.
● Electrode: a conductor through which electricity enters or leaves an object,
substance, or region. Our device the copper and magnesium are the electrodes.
● Oxidation: undergo or cause to undergo a reaction in which electrons are lost
● Reduction: gaining of electrons by one of the atoms involved in the reaction
● Chemical energy: Chemical energy, Energy stored in the bonds of chemical
compounds and it may be released during a chemical reaction, like in a battery it
can also supply electrical power by means of electrolysis.
● Electrical energy: an electric charge that lets work be accomplished

Energy measurements:

Trial Substances Used Voltage

1 1 lemon/ 1 cell with 0

1 zinc node
1 copper node

2 1 lemon/1 cell 1.45

6 magnesium nodes
6 copper nodes

3 1 lemon/ 1 cell 1.8

1 magnesium node
1 copper node

4 1 lemon/ 2 cells 3.29

1 magnesium node*
1 copper node*

5 1 lemon/ 4 cells 5.66

1 magnesium node
 1 copper node

6 3 lemons/ 12 cells 13.77

1 magnesium node
1 copper node
* [1 copper/magnesium node] in each cell

● Our maximum energy produced by a cell was 1.8V but we had the potential of
creating 2.53V, so about 0.73 V was lost in each cell. We produced about 13.77V
with 12 cells and our potential was 30.36V.
● The energy lost was probably due to heat, hydrogen gas in the lemon, and
resistance in the wires traveling to the LED

Citric Acid(C6H8O7)+Magnesium(Mg) ➝ Magnesium Citrate(​C6H6MgO7)+Hydrogen (H2)

Efficiency:

● They don’t conduct electricity very well, we had the potential to create 30.36V
with 12 cells but only got 13.77V
● They go bad after time so they aren’t reliable
● A lemon is only 4% - 6% citric acid so aren’t very powerful, that why we need
multiple to light an LED