An ultracapacitor is also known as a "supercapacitor" or an "electric double-layer capacitor" (EDLC). The EDLC label refers to a carbon-based dielectric that creates a double electric field when the ultracapacitor is charged. Charging an ultracapacitor differs little from charging a conventional capacitor. All you need to do is apply a small voltage source across the leads for about three minutes. What is different is that an ultracapacitor stores charge in the farad range, whereas conventional capacitors store charge in the pico- to micro-farad range. An ultracapacitor connected to a solar cell in a circuit is one way to create a usable charge.
- 1.5-volt ultracapacitor
- 1.5-volt toy electric motor with hookup wire leads
- 1-volt 22 mm by 24 mm monocrystalline solar cell with hookup wire leads
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Instructions
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1
Connect the black (negative) lead of a solar cell to the cathode (negative) lead of an ultracapacitor.
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2
Connect the red (positive) lead of a solar cell to the anode (positive) lead of the ultracapacitor.
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3
Expose the solar cell/ultracapacitor assemblage under direct sunlight for three minutes. The ultracapacitor is now fully charged.
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4
Disconnect the ultracapacitor from the solar cell. Do not touch both ultracapacitor leads at the same time or allow them to touch each other. Doing so will cause the ultracapacitor to discharge.
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5
Connect the positive and negative leads of the ultracapacitor to the positive and negative leads of a toy electric motor. The motor will spin for several minutes until the ultracapacitor is depleted of charge. Reconnect the ultracapacitor to the solar cell to recharge.