Zinc-carbon dry cells

Batteries
 Determining electrochemical cell potentials

• The first step is to determine the standard

reduction potential for the copper half-cell.

• When the copper electrode is attached to a

standard hydrogen electrode, electrons flow from
the hydrogen electrode to the copper electrode,
and copper ions are reduced to copper metal.
Determining electrochemical cell potentials
• The zinc electrode acts as an anode and the hydrogen
electrode as cathode.
• Cell can be represented as:
Zn∣Zn2+∣∣2H+∣H2(g)​
•Oxidation half-cell reaction will be:
Zn→Zn2++2e−
•Reduction half-cell reaction will be:
2H++2e−→H2(g)​
• EMF of the cell is 0.76V.
Determining electrochemical cell potentials
• Ecell​=ERo​(cathode)+EOo​(anode)
•Ecell​=EOo​(anode)+0
•EOo​(anode)=0.76V
• As the reaction on the anode is oxidation, i.e.,
Zn→Zn2++2e−, Eo(Zn/Zn2+)=0.76V
Determining electrochemical cell potentials
• Oxidation half-cell reaction will be: H2(g)​→2H+
+2e−
•Reduction half-cell reaction will be: Cu2++2e−→Cu
• EMF of the cell is 0.34V.
Ecell​=ERo​(cathode)+EOo​(anode)
Ecell​=ERo​(cathode)+0
ERo​(cathode)=0.34V
Determining electrochemical cell potentials
• As the reaction on the cathode is reduction,
Cu2++2e−→Cu, Eo(Cu2+/Cu)=0.34V
•Hence standard reduction potential of Cu electrode will be 0.34V.
Calculating the voltaic cell’s standard
potential
• The final step in calculating electrochemical cell potential is to
combine the copper and zinc half-cells as a voltaic cell. This means
calculating the voltaic cell’s standard potential using the following
formula
Dry cell vs wet cell batteries

• Dry cell batteries use paste

electrolytes, which contain
enough liquid for good
electrical conductivity, but
are stable enough not to
leak when turned upside
down.
• Wet cells constructed in
labs using open glass
containers
 A battery is one or more voltaic cells in a single
package that generates electric current. From the
time of its invention in the 1860s until recently, the
most commonly used voltaic cell was the zinc-carbon
dry cell .
Zinc-carbon dry cells
 A carbon (graphite) rod in the center
of the dry cell serves as the cathode,
but the reduction half-cell reaction
takes place in the paste.
 The carbon rod in this type of dry cell
is called an inactive cathode because
it is made of a material that does not
participate in the redox reaction.
 However, the inactive electrode has
the important purpose of conducting
electrons.
 The zinc shell is the cell’s anode, where the
oxidation of zinc metal occurs according to
the following equation.
Zinc-carbon dry cells
• In the zinc-carbon dry cell, a spacer made of a
porous material and damp from the liquid in the
paste separates the paste from the zinc anode.
• The spacer acts as a salt bridge to allow the
transfer of ions, much like the model voltaic
cell.
• The zinc carbon dry cell produces a voltage of
1.5 V until the reduction product, ammonia,
comes out of its aqueous solution as a gas. At
that point, the voltage drops to a level that
makes the battery useless.
Alkaline batteries
There are 3 main types of batteries:
1) Primary batteries
• non-rechargeable (discarded when the cell reaction reaches
equilibrium)
• one way (irreversible)
• self-contained series of voltaic cells
• ex. modern alkaline battery, silver button battery (like the one we see
in watches), lithium battery,
• alkaline cells is about 1.5V
2) Secondary Batteries
• rechargeable
• self-contained series of voltaic cells
• electrical current supplied to reverse the cell reaction
• ex: lead-acid batteries (car batteries), nickel-metal hydride batteries
(power tools), lithium ion battery (laptops, cell phone)
 a) Charging

• electrolysis (not a voltaic cell)

• need a voltage source
• reaction stops when the cathodic
solution runs out of cations
b) Discharging

• this acts like a galvanic

cell (spontaneous
electron flow)
• reverse process is
occurring, metal on
right is now the anode,
metal on left is the
cathode
 3) Fuel Cells

• non self-contained voltaic cells

• controlled combustion (O2 and H2
enter cells, H20 leaves cells)
• can flow chemicals through
system to generate electricity