Potatoes are great in many forms: mashed, baked, roasted, electrochemical energy source… Most people have seen or experienced the potato battery experiment in a chemistry class, but BatteryBox is taking this exercise to a whole new level.
As you know, one or two potatoes produce enough energy to power a small digital clock. But how much energy would 110 pound of potatoes produce? Enough to charge a smartphone?
For this experiment, the team at BatteryBox cut up and boiled the potatoes to increase the energy transfer. This allows for the harnessing of the full power of the potato.
Essentially, the team combined the 110 pounds of potatoes to create a galvanic cell.
PS: Check out some more practical applications of electrochemical energy at the 228th ECS Meeting.
