The ‘Hamburger’ Battery: An Eco-Friendly, No-Fuss Daniell Cell Experiment!
I’m Ken Kuwako, a science trainer. Every day is an experiment.
The Daniell cell is a crucial topic for understanding how batteries work, right? However, I bet many teachers struggle with the cumbersome preparation and the hassle of disposing of the waste fluids.That’s why I want to introduce the aptly named “🍔Hamburger Daniell Cell”! True to its unique name, this is a groundbreaking simplified Daniell cell, built by layering materials just like a hamburger.
Its biggest appeal isn’t just its fun appearance, but the fact that it produces significantly less waste fluid than a standard Daniell cell, making it an eco-friendly choice. Plus, it’s easy to make with common materials, drastically cutting down on lesson prep time.Of course, as a simplified version, it has the drawback that you can’t directly observe the solutions. But don’t worry! By conducting this experiment in combination with a standard Daniell cell (for demonstration), you can leverage the benefits of both to deepen student understanding.
For example, you could visually demonstrate ion movement and the dissolution/deposition of metals with the standard Daniell cell, and then have students easily experience power generation with the Hamburger-style cell described next. This combination allows students to grasp the fundamental principles of the Daniell cell from multiple angles, leading to deeper learning. Why not incorporate this “Hamburger Daniell Cell” into your classes for a fun, eco-friendly chemistry experiment that will make your students say, “Aha! That makes sense!”?
Materials Needed and How to Build It
The key to this Hamburger Daniell Cell is the cellophane sheet. Like the “porous pot” or “salt bridge” in a standard Daniell cell, it acts as a “separator,” preventing the different electrolytes from mixing while still allowing ions to pass through. Surprisingly, even colored cellophane sheets from a dollar store work perfectly, which saves both preparation time and cost. Furthermore, by using filter paper (or kitchen paper as a substitute) as the medium to soak up the solutions, you minimize waste fluid, making cleanup incredibly simple.
Neo Cellophane 8 Colors/8 Sheets
※And get this: I was told you can even do this experiment with a plain copy paper instead of cellophane! Apparently, a saturated salt solution can also be used in place of zinc sulfate solution.
【Materials to Prepare】
- Zinc Sulfate Solution: Approx. 5% (Dissolve 9.8g of zinc sulfate heptahydrate in 100g of water)
- Copper Sulfate Solution: Approx. 17% (Dissolve 35.7g of copper (II) sulfate pentahydrate in 100g of water)
- Plastic Droppers (recommended here) x 2
- Petri dishes x 2
- Zinc plate, Copper plate
- Filter paper x 2 sheets (kitchen paper can also be used)
- Cellophane x 1 sheet
- Tissue paper x 1 sheet
- Propeller/Motor, Electronic Melody Device (Narika brand)
- Tester/Multimeter (recommended here)
- Alligator clips, Tweezers (I bought the cellophane at a dollar store.)
Here is everything you’ll need.
Experimental Procedure
Now, it’s time to assemble the Hamburger Daniell Cell. The procedure is extremely simple—it’s just like building a sandwich by layering the ingredients!Place the filter paper on a petri dish and soak it thoroughly with copper sulfate and zinc sulfate solutions, using the plastic droppers.
Lay a piece of tissue paper on the desk and place the copper plate on top of it. Do this near the edge of the desk. The layering is as follows:
Lay down the tissue paper, place the copper plate on it, add the filter paper soaked in copper sulfate solution, and then place the cellophane on top.
Next, place the filter paper soaked in zinc sulfate solution on top of that, and finally, add the zinc plate.
Be careful to ensure that the copper and zinc plates do not touch directly. Then, clamp the setup with alligator clips and try connecting it to an electronic music box or a motor. Afterward, measure the voltage with a tester.
When I made mine, the electromotive force was about 1V. It would be nice to get around 1.1V.
3. To keep the current flowing for a while, connect the two terminals of the alligator clips (creating a short circuit) and leave it for about 2 minutes. Afterward, peel off the filter paper attached to each metal plate and observe the colors and other changes.
The filter paper attached to the copper plate. The color has turned reddish.
The filter paper attached to the zinc plate. It has also turned brown, for some reason. Did the copper ions pass through the cellophane?
Simply put, a Daniell cell is a device that generates electricity by utilizing the difference in the tendency of two different metals to become ions (a dissolved state in water).
The Mechanism of the Daniell Cell
Let’s look at the main materials used in a Daniell cell:
- Zinc plate : Becomes the negative electrode (–).
- Copper plate: Becomes the positive electrode (+).
- Zinc sulfate solution : The liquid in which the zinc plate is immersed.
- Copper sulfate solution : The liquid in which the copper plate is immersed. This solution is blue.
- Cellophane (or a porous pot): A separator wall that prevents the two solutions from mixing.
How Electricity Flows
The flow of electricity (current) is actually the movement of tiny particles called electrons. In a Daniell cell, a kind of “competition” takes place to force these electrons out. It’s a competition over how badly a metal wants to dissolve into the solution and become an ion. (This is called the ionization tendency or electrochemical series.)
- Zinc (Zn): Really, really wants to dissolve! It wants to become an ion (Zn^2+) even if it has to give up electrons (e^-).
- Copper (Cu): Doesn’t want to dissolve as much as zinc. In fact, the copper ions (Cu2+) already in the solution (the source of the blue color) want to receive electrons (e-) and return to being metallic copper (Cu).
This dynamic—zinc that wants to lose electrons and copper ions that want to gain electrons—is the entire mechanism of the battery!
The Flow of Electricity, Step by Step
- The Negative Electrode: Zinc Side — Zinc dissolves and throws out electrons!
The zinc plate (Zn) throws out two of its electrons (e-), transforms into a “zinc ion” (Zn^2+), and dissolves into the zinc sulfate solution.
Zn → Zn²⁺ + 2e⁻ (Electron release)
As a result, the zinc plate gradually dissolves and becomes worn down. The discarded electrons (e-) travel a great distance through the wire (conductor) toward the copper plate. This is the true nature of the electric current!
- The Positive Electrode: Copper Side — Copper ions receive the electrons!
The electrons (e^-) arrive at the copper plate via the wire.Then, the “copper ions” (Cu^2+) in the copper sulfate solution (which cause the blue color) rush to the copper plate, as if they’ve been waiting, and accept two of the electrons (e-).
Cu²⁺ + 2e⁻ → Cu (Electron acceptance)
The copper ions that received the electrons return to being simple copper atoms.Consequently, copper metal continuously deposits onto the copper plate, making it “thicker.” The blue color of the solution also fades.
What is the role of the Cellophane?
The cellophane acts as a “separator” to prevent the two solutions from mixing immediately. However, it’s not just a simple wall. On the zinc side, the number of positive ions (Zn^2+) increases, while on the copper side, the number of positive ions (Cu^2+) decreases. If this imbalance were to continue, the electrical charge would become polarized. Therefore, negative ions (like SO_4^2-) pass through the tiny pores of the cellophane to maintain electrical neutrality, which is a crucial role.For information on the standard Daniell cell, please also refer to this article:
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