Potato energy/ car battery question!

[deleted-366090]

Hi guys,

Bit of a weird question and didn't know where else to turn so forgive me if this is in the wrong area! I'm doing some research for a video I'm putting together in a couple of months about car batteries.

This is where it gets a bit head-twisty: using the tried and tested concept of using potatoes as a power cell, I'm trying to work out how many potatoes I'd need to use them as a replacement for a car battery.

Now as I understand it (and I could be completely wrong here, which is why I'm asking the pros!) as standard the voltage of a potato is about 0.5v and car batteries are usually around 12-15v, which would equal somewhere in the region to 24-30 potatoes. Basically everything in my brain is telling me that it isn't going to be as simple as that and that and that I'm missing something fundamental that explains why that wouldn't work.

Further to that, I've been reading that a boiled potato yields about 10 times more power than its un-cooked counterpart. Would three boiled potatoes plugged into a car battery terminal really produce enough power to get a car engine to turn over? Also, is it the heat from a freshly boiled potato that gives it its energy, or would boiled but cold potatoes suffice? Again, I have my doubts but these are the numbers I'm working off of at the moment so happy to be corrected!

Many thanks in advance for your sage wisdom, I'll be fascinated to get a definitive answer on this one!

[deleted-2131]

Hi Batteroo,

It sounds like your project is a bit beyond the scope of these Forums, which are specifically for K-12 students, parents, and teachers working on science fair projects. A different set of online forums will be better able to help you.