Science Fair

Turner 2.15 Chemistry

Do different fruits give off different Voltages? Which has the highest?
What fruit can conduct the most electricity and why does this fruit produce so much
electricity?

Rationale
My intention for this project was to find an easily available resource, that could help possibly
give power to people that dont have power.

Abstract
Can fruit provide enough voltage to create some sort of power to a 1.5VDC hobby motor,
and which fruit can provide the most? My intention for this project was to find an easily
available resource, that could help possibly give power to people that dont have power. My
hypothesis is that when measuring the electricity of a lemon, an orange, a lime, and an apple,
and comparing voltage, the lemon will produce the highest result. The reasoning being that
the lemon is highest in citric acid. The procedure that I followed for this experiment was to
first purchase the following supplies needed: fruit, zinc, voltmeter, screw, and copper wire.
Once I had my supplies, I tested each piece of fruit individually, by soaking the screw in zinc,
then placing the copper wire and screw into the piece of fruit, about an inch apart. I then
recorded all measurements from three separate attempts, on each fruit. Lastly, I averaged the
recordings for each fruit, and compared the results. My findings were that the lemon had the
highest overall average voltage of all the fruit.

Hypothesis
My hypothesis is that if I measure the amount of voltage that can be created from limes,
lemons, apples, and oranges, in order to power a 1.5VDC hobby motor, and compare the
results, then the lemons will have the highest voltage because lemons are highest in citric acid.
Theoretically, out of all the fruit, it will take the least amount of lemons to power a 1.5VDC
hobby motor.

Materials
For this experiment I will need one voltmeter, one lemon, one orange, one lime, and apple, a
copper wire, and a screw. I will also need zinc to put on the tip of the screw.

Procedure
1) Buy fruit, zinc, and voltmeter. (get copper wire and a screw if you dont already have some)
2) Lay the fruit out.
3) Put zinc on the screw.
4) Put screw and copper in the fruit at least one inch apart.
5) Mark down all the measurements you have taken.
6) Compare all measurements.
7) See which has the highest voltage.

Image for voltage of the lemon was unavailable...

Results
Lemon:
Attempt #1) 0.96 Volts
Attempt #2) 0.93 Volts
Attempt #3) 0.89 Volts
Lemon Average: 0.92 Volts

Lime:
Attempt #1) 0.85 Volts
Attempt #2) 0.84 Volts
Attempt #3) 0.83 Volts
Lime Average: 0.84 Volts

Apple:
Attempt #1) 0.96 Volts
Attempt #2) 0.89 Volts
Attempt #3) 0.87 Volts
Apple Average: 0.90 Volts

Orange:
Attempt #1) 0.68 Volts
Attempt #2) 0.74 Volts
Attempt #3) 0.74 Volts
Orange Average 0.72 Volts

Conclusion
So, can fruit provide enough voltage to create some sort of power to a 1.5VDC hobby motor,
and which fruit can provide the most? The answer is yes! My evidence supports my
hypothesis that lemons will have the highest overall voltage. It proves that it will take the least
lemons to power a 1.5VDC hobby motor, taking at least two lemons. I gathered this
information from when I measured the VDC of the lemons, and the other fruits.

Resources
KIRSTIN HENDRICKSON. "Citric Acid Vs. Lemon Juice." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 08
Sept. 2015. Web. 03 Oct. 2016.
"How Much Citric Acid Does a Lime Have?" Reference. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2016. (author and date
published not stated)
Applianceman, The. "Use a Multimeter." WikiHow. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2016. (publisher not stated)
II, Bryan Stokes. "How to Measure the Voltage in Fruits." EHow. Demand Media, 3 Oct. 2016. Web. 03
Oct. 2016.
M, Hari. "Hari M." Why. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Oct. 2016. (publisher not stated)
"Bar Graph." Create a Graph Classic. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2016. (publisher not stated)