I'm trying to make a lemon out of a battery and...?

Question

I'm trying to make a lemon out of a battery, and it just won't work!

I have a nail in one end, a penny in the other, and alligator clips connecting them to a small flash light bulb. I followed the instructions in my Science Projects book, but the bulb just will not light up!!!!

Why?

Does anyone know why a lemon would work as a battery? my book says it will, but it doesn't explain properly.

Answer 1

Two things are needed to get the bulb to light,  current and voltage.   The voltage comes from the chemical potential of the lemon based battery.   But you may not be getting much current if the internal resistance and resistance of the components is high.

You'll do better in demonstrating your battery if you just connect it across a voltmeter.   That doesn't require much current at all.

Answer 2

Don't you mean how to make a battery out of a lemon? And how many lemons do you have. A good number might be three. also the light is not going to shine very bright and probably won't be noticeable unless you are in a room that is close to pitch black. I forget why a lemon actually works but you can probably look it up and you will get your answer.

... i just looked it up myself.  Hmmm apparently there is not enough current no matter how many lemons to light a flash lightbulb. Another websight says to use a light emitting diode LED that requires low voltage and low current. so yeah get one of those....probably still won't light up very well.

Answer 3

Maybe your bulb is too big for the lemon or you could try mushing the lemon up a bit so that the juice will flow better.  Sorry about the pun, I didn't realize it until after I had typed it.