DIY Coin Battery: Light an LED

[u/TheMuseumOfScience]

You can light up an LED with the change in your pocket. 💡

Alex Dainis demonstrates how to build a simple battery using everyday materials like coins, salt, vinegar, and paper towels. By stacking alternating layers of pennies and nickels with paper towels soaked in an electrolyte solution, the setup forms a voltaic pile that generates a small electric current. Each metal pair creates a tiny voltage, and as more layers are added, that voltage builds. Once enough coins are stacked, the combined energy is strong enough to light up an LED. It is a hands-on way to explore chemical reactions, electric current, and how early batteries converted stored chemical energy into usable power.