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by 43<G
K . One could even have a reverse current
V. C ONCLUSIONS
through the battery when across the battery is made higher We have shown that due to the tendency of the battery
than . For that another source of emf, say ON and with
6 N , so that =N# of the battery in to attain a voltage across its terminals equal to the chemical
an internal resistance potential , a finite drop in voltage from the open circuit value
question, is connected across its terminals (Fig. (2)). This is
done, for example, to recharge the lead-acid battery or other
is essential for a steady current in the circuit because then
and only then will there be chemical reactions taking place
rechargeable batteries. The magnitude of the reverse current
through the battery will now be given by 49'GPCQKL
2 , as so that a current flows within the battery. Thus a drop in
the recharging voltage >/RN1 4
N is larger than , then the voltage is essential for a steady state current implying
4GH=NSKL<G K . The reverse current means that the the existence of a finite internal resistance in any practical
positive charges move towards the negative electrode while the emf with a resistance
6 in series. Therefore a battery has
battery, which can be justifiably represented as a source of
negative charges move towards the positive electrode, thereby to have an internal resistance in order to function as a power
reversing the chemical reaction and recharging the battery. In source. Further we have shown that Thevenin’s theorem does
the case of non-rechargeable battery no reverse current takes not make our results superfluous, in fact our results are made
place and we could say it has a discontinuity in its internal use of in its derivation.
resistance at T<UWV . (One is in general, cautioned against
attempts to recharge non-rechargeable batteries as these could
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
explode).
Now is the amount of chemical energy expended as work It was due to the nagging doubts expressed by Tanmay
on a charge in transporting it from one electrode to the Singal, then an undergraduate student, in the standard text-
other. Out of this, an amount is spent against the electric book explanation for the internal resistance of a battery
field, which ultimately gets delivered to the external load, the that prompted me to look for a more compelling physically
remaining energy XGH2Y
K represents the ohmic losses within arguments. It is hoped these would be beneficial to others as
the battery. Thus GHZC[K\4Z>4X]
are the power losses in well in similar predicaments.
the battery as expected from a resistance
2 lying outside the
battery in series. R EFERENCES
The actual value of the internal resistance of a cell may [1] D. Halliday, R. Resnick and J. Walker, Fundamentals of Physics, 9th ed.
depend upon a combination of various factors. If the effective John Wiley, NJ, 2011, Ch. 27.
[2] D. C. Giancoli, Physics for Scientists and Engineers - With Modern
cross-section areas of the electrodes are large, more current Physics 4th ed. Pearson Prentice Hall, NJ, 2009, Ch. 26.
may flow through the battery even for the same 2^ change,
implying a lower
6 value. Similarly a larger separation [3] R. A. Serway and J. W. Jewett, Jr. Physics for Scientists and Engineers
- With Modern Physics 8th ed. Brooks/Cole, Belmont, 2010, Ch. 28.
[4] M. E. Van Valkenburg, Network Analysis, 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall, NJ, 1974,
between the electrodes would imply a smaller push on the Ch. 2.
charges even for the same _C change (1), resulting in a
smaller current, implying a higher
6 value. The nature of [5] E. M. Purcell, Electricity and Magnetism - Berkeley Phys. Course vol. 2,
2nd ed. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1985, Ch. 4.
[6] J. D. Ryder, Network, Lines and Fields, 2nd ed. Prentice Hall, NJ, 1955,
the constituents (electrodes and the electrolyte) of a battery Ch. 1.
2
also matter as a better conducting electrolyte means a higher
current for the same +` and thereby a smaller . Further
as with usage the density of chemical components within the
battery may decrease, it would lead to an increase in the
internal resistance.