Week Two

     During week two, the group began trials, testing different electrochemical cells and the variables that affected how much voltage the electrochemical cell could produce. Some variables included the saturation of the water, the amount of water, and sanded versus not sanded metal.

     The first method used involved putting large pieces of metal into a cup of water in order to obtain maximum surface area. This was done with sanded and not sanded metal, the volume of the water used was altered, and different amounts of salt were added. The less volume of water the greater the voltage, which is not what the group had predicted. Also as salt was added, the voltage began to decrease, which is also something unexpected.

     The second method involved using an ice cube tray to make smaller cells, but in larger numbers. A piece of copper and a piece of aluminum were placed in multiple sections, without touching each other. A parallel circuit and a series circuit were tested. This method was significantly more successful because it generated almost four times the number of volts the first method did.