Q1. What was a major significance of Volta’s pile?
Volta’s pile, made from alternating metal discs and salt-water-soaked separators, was the first practical source of continuous current.
Technology
Quiz: The Making of the Modern Battery
Sample questions from this book. Open the app for the full chapter quizzes and final exam.
Q2. What improvement was associated with John Frederic Daniell’s 1836 cell?
The Daniell cell separated the reactants into two solutions, helping reduce the hydrogen-bubble problem found in simpler cells.
Q3. What distinguishes a rechargeable battery from a primary battery?
Charging supplies electrical energy that reverses the reactions involved in discharge, allowing the cell to be used again.
Q4. How do lithium ions behave in a lithium-ion battery during charging and discharging?
Lithium ions travel internally between the electrodes through the electrolyte; electrons flow through the external circuit.
Q5. Why can grid-connected batteries be useful alongside solar and wind power?
Batteries can shift electricity across time, helping balance short-term differences between renewable supply and demand.
Q6. What did Volta’s pile demonstrate?
Volta’s pile used repeated metal pairs separated by damp material to deliver a sustained current.
Q7. What is the main role of the external conductor in an electrochemical cell?
Electrons travel through the external circuit, while ions move within the cell to balance charge.
Q8. How did the Daniell cell reduce a common problem in early cells?
Copper ions were reduced at the copper electrode, limiting the hydrogen accumulation that caused polarization in many earlier cells.