To catch everyone up from last week’s
post. I am trying to create a plant battery using household or easily obtained
items. So far, I am having my doubts that it is actually happening to my
design. Initial testing has shown that both voltage and amperage has been a
steady value for the past 4 days. Voltage was ~0.5V whilst amperage was
moisture dependent ranging from 0.01mA dry to
~0.03-0.04mA wet. This
data does not support what should be happening if it was a true plant battery.
First off, plants grow. In 4 days I have not seen any
growth in numbers nor any drop in my readings; these numbers should be getting
bigger.
What is happening? And how can I
prevent it?
Circa 1780, biologist Luigi Galvani discovered the phenomena
of “animal electricity.” His friend Alessandro Volta, to disprove Galvani’s
theory, and built a device called a Galvanic cell that applies the technique of
using different types of metals separated by an acid soaked card or cloth to
produce a current.
In
my initial design I had dissimilar metals, but is there a salt or acid between
them?
Soil
can be broken up into subsets to help characterize the living conditions. The
subsets are: PH which is a 1 to 14 scale (1=acidic, 7=neutral, 14=basic), N the
amount of nitrogen available, P is the amount of phosphorus, and K the amount
of potassium. Fifteen dollars later on a cheap soil kit from a hardware store
later. I found that I do have acidic soil. Early signs of my plant battery
looked successful, but Volta probably could have predicted my results.
This time I used similar metals.
Aluminum foil worked very nice, easily available, will not rust, and more importantly
will not be a galvanic cell. I continued to use moss as my plant substrate. This
should show my initial voltage at zero. But something strange happened, when
testing this I found an initial voltage of .151V. This needed more
investigating.
This
is the last week of my project, and I’m exploring every path I can to make this
work. I looked at anything plant and electric related, including microbes that
produce electricity, pyramids over electrodes and wishing energy, anything at
all that could possibly help me… I sat back, almost defeated. My back hurt from
hunching over a computer for most of the day. I looked up at the ceiling, then
outside. “Plants derive energy so easily, they sit in the sun, drink some water
and minerals...” Nutrients plants absorb. How did those nutrients get there?
BAM! The nitrogen cycle, the phosphorus cycle. Why have I been overlooking
this? Natural processes in nature that convert elements in our environment into
sustenance for plants.
A short while later while looking at forums I came across
this quote:
“Chapter VII,
Section 4: ‘Plants and Nitrifying Bacteria Compete’
Plants, algae, and all photosynthesizing organisms use the N of ammonium (not nitrate) to produce their proteins.
Nitrate conversion to ammonium by plants (e.g. 'nitrate reduction') requires energy and appears to be the mirror image of nitrification. Nitrifying bacteria gain the energy they need for their life processes solely from ammonium oxidation to nitrate; the total energy gain from the two-steps of nitrification is 84 Kca/mol, and the overall reaction is:
NH4+ + 2 O2 => NO3- + H20 + 2 H+
Plants must expend essentially the same amount of energy (83 Kcal/mol) to convert nitrates back to ammonium in the two-step process of nitrate reduction. The overall reaction for nitrate reduction is:
NO3- + H20 + 2 H+ => NH4+ + 2 O2
Plants use ammonium to synthesize their proteins. Thus, when nitrifying bacteria convert ammonium to nitrates, plants are forced—at great energy—to convert nitrates back to ammonium.”
Plants, algae, and all photosynthesizing organisms use the N of ammonium (not nitrate) to produce their proteins.
Nitrate conversion to ammonium by plants (e.g. 'nitrate reduction') requires energy and appears to be the mirror image of nitrification. Nitrifying bacteria gain the energy they need for their life processes solely from ammonium oxidation to nitrate; the total energy gain from the two-steps of nitrification is 84 Kca/mol, and the overall reaction is:
NH4+ + 2 O2 => NO3- + H20 + 2 H+
Plants must expend essentially the same amount of energy (83 Kcal/mol) to convert nitrates back to ammonium in the two-step process of nitrate reduction. The overall reaction for nitrate reduction is:
NO3- + H20 + 2 H+ => NH4+ + 2 O2
Plants use ammonium to synthesize their proteins. Thus, when nitrifying bacteria convert ammonium to nitrates, plants are forced—at great energy—to convert nitrates back to ammonium.”
In the first chemical equation the
nitrifying bacteria are creating hydrogen! Positive Ions! This might be the
missing link I was looking for! The thing about this bacteria is, it is everywhere
if you know where to look for it.
Certain plants have nodules,
small bump like structures on their roots. These nodules harbor the nitrifying bacteria
I am looking for
And clover, that magical plant
that grants luck if you find one with 4 petals, is one of the abundant sample
size specimens I can find while I’m out and about. Cost = 0.00
The thought is, if I can get a clover plant I should get
a natural inoculation of this bacteria I’m looking for. My electrodes, though
similar metal, will have a much different structure to accommodate the new root
system and the most surface area to interact with the hydrogen ions.
O.K.
no judgment on the paint art, it proves my point, it’s 12:26 a.m. and I was excited
when I found this out.
Let’s see what happens!
Sciventure
Update’s Tuesdays
and Thursdays.
