Page 104 - Alternative Energy Systems in Building Design

80 SOLAR POWER SYSTEM PHYSICS AND TECHNOLOGIES

researcher John Frederich Daniell developed an arrangement in which a copper plate
was located at the bottom of a wide-mouthed jar. A cast-zinc piece commonly referred
to as a crowfoot because of its shape was located at the top of the plate, hanging on
the rim of the jar. Two electrolytes, or conducting liquids, were employed. A saturated
copper sulfate solution covered the copper plate and extended halfway up the remaining
distance toward the zinc piece. Then a zinc sulfate solution, which is a less dense
liquid, was carefully poured over a structure that floated above the copper sulfate and
immersed the zinc.
In a similar experiment, instead of zinc sulfate, magnesium sulfate or dilute sulfuric
acid was used. The Daniell cell also was one of the first batteries that incorporated mer-
cury, which was amalgamated with the zinc anode to reduce corrosion when the batteries
were not in use. The Daniell battery, which produced about 1.1 V, was used extensively
to power telegraphs, telephones, and even to ring doorbells in homes for over a century.

Plante’s battery In 1859, Raymond Plante invented a battery that used a cell by
rolling up two strips of lead sheet separated by pieces of flannel material. The entire
assembly, when immersed in dilute sulfuric acid, produced an increased current that
was improved on subsequently by insertion of separators between the sheets.

The carbon-zinc battery In 1866, Georges Leclanché developed the first cell bat-
tery in France. The battery, instead of using liquid electrolyte, was constructed from
moist ammonium chloride paste and a carbon and zinc anode and cathode. It was sealed
and sold as the first dry battery. The battery was rugged, easy to manufacture, and had a
good shelf life. Carbon-zinc batteries were in use over the next century until they were
replaced by alkaline-manganese batteries.

Lead-acid battery suitable for automobiles In 1881, Camille Faure produced
the first modern lead-acid battery, which he constructed from cast-lead grids that were
packed with lead oxide paste instead of lead sheets. The battery had a larger current-
producing capacity. Its performance was improved further by the insertion of separators
between the positive and negative plates to prevent particles falling from these plates,
which could short out the positive and negative plates from the conductive sediment.

The Edison battery Between 1898 and 1908, Thomas Edison developed an alka-
line cell with iron as the anode material (−) and nickel oxide as the cathode material
(+). The electrolyte used was potassium hydroxide, the same as in modern nickel-
cadmium and alkaline batteries. The cells were used extensively in industrial and
railroad applications. Nickel-cadmium batteries are still being used and have remained
unchanged ever since. Figure 3.41 is a diagram of current flow in a lead-acid battery.
In parallel with Edison’s work, Jungner and Berg in Sweden were working on the
development of a nickel-cadmium cell. In place of the iron used in the Edison cell, they
used cadmium, with the result that the cell operated better at low temperatures and was
capable of self-discharge to a lesser degree than the Edison cell. In addition, the cell
could be trickle-charged at a reduced rate. In 1949, the alkaline-manganese battery, also
referred to as the alkaline battery, was developed by Lew Urry at the Eveready Battery