Can you make a battery with two gasses?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion explores the concept of creating a battery using two gases, specifically hydrogen and oxygen, and whether such a configuration can be classified as a battery. The scope includes definitions of batteries, comparisons with fuel cells, and analogies with natural phenomena.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested, Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests that a fuel cell can be made with hydrogen and oxygen gas, questioning if a similar setup with stationary tanks can be considered a battery.
  • Another participant raises a question about the definition of "battery" and why a fuel cell with two tanks might not fit that definition.
  • A different viewpoint proposes the idea of a "gas phase battery," likening it to a car battery where everything is stationary.
  • One participant draws an analogy to a thundercloud, describing it as a large battery made of gas, with positive and negative ions behaving similarly to a battery's charge separation.
  • Another participant argues that if two tanks and a fuel cell are placed in a single box, it behaves like a chemical battery, thus supporting the classification of this setup as a battery.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the definition of a battery and whether the proposed gas setup qualifies as one. There is no consensus on the classification of the system discussed.

Contextual Notes

Definitions of "battery" and "fuel cell" are not explicitly agreed upon, leading to ambiguity in the discussion. The analogy to a thundercloud introduces additional complexity without resolving the main question.

Thecla
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TL;DR
making a battery with gasses instead of metal plates
You can make a fuel cell with hydrogen and oxygen gas, but can you make a battery with a tank of hydrogen and a tank of oxygen?
 
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How do you define "battery"? Or why the fuel cell with two tanks doesn't count?
 
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something similar to car battery. everything is stationary. sort of a gas phase battery
 
A thundercloud is a big battery made of gas. From memory, the light, positive ions move to the top of the cloud, and the heavy negative ions move to the bottom. The plasma discharge of the gas is the lightbulb flashing on for a moment.
 
Put two tanks and the fuel cell in a single box. You can't say from the outside what is inside, it doesn't behave differently than a chemical battery, so I am ready to call it a battery.
 

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