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How to Measure the Voltage Difference in Galvanic Actions

A battery is a device which is capable of converting chemical energy to electrical energy. It normally consists of an electrolyte which contains electrically charged ions. Placing electrode materials such as copper and zinc into the electrolyte leads to an electrochemical reaction known as galvanic action. Galvanic action leads to the generation of an electrical current between the two different electrode materials. The potential difference -- voltage -- between the electrodes in galvanic action can be measured using a digital multimeter.

Things You'll Need

Digital multimeter
Galvanic cell

Instructions

- 1
  Plug the measurement leads into the digital multimeter. Plug the red lead into the positive terminal and the black lead into the negative terminal.
- 2
  Switch on the digital multimeter and select the voltage function by rotating the front dial to the "DC Voltage" position. Bring the metallic tips of the two measurements probes into contact with one another. The display should show 0.00 Volts.
- 3
  Place the tip of one measurement lead onto the cathode of the galvanic cell, and the tip of the second measurement lead onto the anode of the galvanic cell. The display on the digital multimeter should change and indicate the voltage due to galvanic action in the cell. Switch off the digital multimeter.

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