Making Electricity from Lemons

Goal: This experiment is designed to show that you can gather electricity using the acid inside of a lemon. This is relevant to the class because it shows that there are alternative ways to create energy which could help make energy cleaner and more affordable.

Materials:

• 18-gauge copper wire
• Wire clippers
• Steel paper clip/ 2 inch strip of zinc
• Sheet of coarse sandpaper
• Voltage Meter or small LED light bulb
• Connector for the LED Light bulb
• Lemon

Procedure:

1. Strip two inches of insulation off of the copper wire, then use the wire clippers to cut the two inches of bare wire
2. If using the paper clip, straighten out the clip and cut it to be about two inches (skip step if using two inch strip of zinc
3. Use the sandpaper to smoothen the ends of the wire, zinc, or paperclip
4. Gently squeeze the lemon with your hands; be sure not to break the lemon’s skin
5. Connect the wire and zinc strip (or paper clip) using the connector to the LED light bulb or voltage meter
6. Record results

Expectation: We expect that when the project is done correctly, it will be able to light up the small LED light for a small amount of time, it should also show electricity if the voltage meter is used.