How can a potato be able to light up a bulb?
Well the science behind the fact a potato can light up a bulb, is that the potato has electrolytes (water and salt). When connected to zinc or copper it makes a chemical reaction. It then produces electricity. The potatoes electrolytes can conduct electricity because the electrolytes inside a potato let’s the electricity travel.
Building a potato battery!
The items you will need to light up a bulb are potatoes, zinc, and copper. You can use zinc galvanized nails for the zinc source. For copper, one can use copper coins. You will also need copper wire and wire cutters to cut the copper wire. The number of items you will need for each object are 3 copper coins, 3 zinc nails, 4 copper wires that are 4 to 5 inches long, and 3 potatoes. We also need a small light bulb, which can be bought on Amazon. It is called a 5mm LED light diode, LED circuit kit.
Start with taking a coin and wrapping it in one of the pieces of wire you cut. Make sure the wire is tightly wrapped around the penny. Don’t use up all the wire when wrapping it around the penny. Only wrap the penny with wire 3 times. Leave at least 3 inches of wire out because, you will need to connect the other side of the wire to a zinc nail. Now do this for each penny and when your done, put 1 penny in each potato. Put it in the flatter surface of the potato and make sure to leave space to put the nail in. When your done putting 1 penny in each of the 3 potatoes, then take a potato and start to place 1 zinc nail 1 inch away from the penny and put it in halfway. Make sure to leave space so you can wrap wire around the top of the nail but, do not start wrapping the wire yet. Put a zinc nail in all three of the potatoes. You will then have a nail and a penny that’s wrapped with wire in each potato. 
The penny that has the wire wrapped, take the free piece of wire that is hanging out and connect it to another potato zinc nail. Do not connect it to the nail that’s in the same potato as the wire. And now with the 2 potatoes connected take the free wire from the other penny, and take your third potato and wrap the wire around the third potatoes nail.
The wires you will have left is the one that is wrapped around the penny and has not been connected yet. The fourth wire you have not used yet, take it and wrap it around the nail that has not connected to a wire yet. Take your small light bulb and wrap it with the other side of the wire, you just wrapped the nail with. Now take the wire on the last potato and wrap it around the light bulb. And that’s how you can use a potato to produce energy light!
Related Stories:
- https://sciencing.com/potato-light-bulb-experiment-kids-12105514.html
- https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/ask-an-expert/viewtopic.php?t=22848
- https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/a-potato-battery-can-light-up-a-room-for-over-a-month-180948260/
- https://stanfordhouse.com.hk/uploads/9781532259715.pdf
- https://www.bibalex.org/SCIplanet/en/Article/Details.aspx?id=150
Take Action:
- https://www.instructables.com/Potato-Battery-Driven-LED/
- https://thecreativerecycler.com/potato-light-bulb-experiment/
- https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/everyday-innovations/how-to-make-potato-powered-light-bulb.htm
- https://www.science-sparks.com/how-to-make-a-potato-battery/
- https://codepineapple.com/activities-for-kids/potato-light-bulb-experiment
