You read the title right! Scrap metal is loaded with electricity just itching for you to use. It's not difficult. It's safe and clean. In fact, the process could be called a New Alternative Energy because it helps clean up the planet in addition to providing clean electric power. You simply take the scrap metal, and use it to power a group of home made batteries… metal in… electricity out. It's as simple as that.

   The fact is, the CoolScientist has run his portable radio on just 8 aluminum gum wrappers, or old nails for several hours! It's Rust Power!

Scrap metal is loaded with electricity.

Fuel Metal Aluminum Zinc Iron Lead

Watt-Hours per pound 3718 614 556 110

Watt-Hours per Kilogram 8179.6 1350.8 1223.2 242.0

   Ordinary dry cells use zinc, while car batteries use lead. Energy is made available in the process of refining the metal from its ore. When you retrieve that energy in an electric cell, the metal on the negative end corrodes into its original ore. Iron rusts, and aluminum becomes aluminum oxide. The only difference is that it's pure, rather than being a mixture of other stuff as in its natural state.

   The only difference between the zinc in a dry cell and the coating on a galvanized nail is its shape! So in order to get the maximum out of your junk power cell, we must merely deal with the odd-ball shape of the metal.

   So let's have some fun and build a junk metal battery.

   Here's how to do our first battery.

1. Take a clean plastic cup, such as one you get yogurt in. You could use a coconut shell, but you would have to line it with something so that it doesn't leak.
2. Place the aluminum foil in the cup with one end hanging out over the edge of the cup.
3. Cut a piece of copper (pipe or whatever) so that one end will set on the bottom of the cup, and the other end will stick above the top of the cup.
4. Fill the cup with an electrolyte like salt water, (regular seawater will do.)

   If you touch the leads of a voltmeter from the copper to the aluminum it should register about a half-volt. Now before you turn up your nose at such a small amount, remember it only takes three of these home-made cells to make a volt and a half, such as you get from a commercial dry cell.

   To get 1.5 volts, the cells are connected in series by using two plastic clothes pins to clip the aluminum foil sticking out a first cell to the copper of the 2nd cell, and the aluminum sticking out of the 2nd one, to the copper of the third one. You should get 1.5 volts when you test from one far end to the other.

   The aluminum will be the negative (-) end and the copper will be the positive (+) end. If you need more voltage, then just hook more cells in the series.

   If you have one of those small WalkMan FM radios, this set up will power it quite well. (However, DO NOT hook the wires up backwards, because it will destroy the radio.)

   If the cells have the right voltage, but do not have enough power to maintain that voltage while trying to run the radio, we need to make the cells more efficient. Here are some things that can be done.

1. Put a teaspoon of Lye (Draino,) lemon juice or vinegar in each sell. While you could use acid from a car battery, we recommend that you DO NOT, because it's more dangerous.
2. The closer the two metals are to each other, without touching, the better.
3. Make sure the metals do not have grease, paint or whatever on them. They must be clean.

   Remember, many of these chemicals are dangerous, so don't drink them, and don't let small children play with them either.

   A complete rundown, including plans for the production of commercial-level "Rust Power" stations can be found in the electronic book, "How to Recycle Scrap Metal into Electricity" available on the Lesson Index Page.

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