Bounce A Battery to Learn If It Is Still Good -- Really

[William Seger]

Inspired by a YouTube video, scientists in the US have confirmed that a simple bounce test can be used as a technique to indicate charge in a battery.

Alkaline AA batteries are one of the most common battery types and there are a range of approaches to assess the charge in these batteries, often entailing electronic indicators. Now, a team led by Daniel Steingart of Princeton University have correlated the coefficient of restitution (COR), a measure of bounce, with batteries at various charges and determined their charge to a similar degree of accuracy as in situ energy-dispersive x-ray diffraction (EDXRD).

This level of accuracy is possible as the change in bounce is directly related to the physical changes that occur as the charge depletes.

Read more: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bounce-a-battery-to-learn-if-it-is-still-good-really-video/?WT.mc_id=SA_WR_20150408

[HassleCat]

1. April 1st?

Is this article dated April 1st?

[William Seger]

2. Why, yes it is. Why do you ask?

[F4lconF16]

3. It's real.

And from a little while ago. Also not very accurate or useful, according to the Princeton story.

http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S42/72/95S25/index.xml?section=topstories

http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2015/ta/c5ta01576f

[leveymg]

4. Does the bounce test work for Ds and car batteries, too?

[Travis_0004]

6. I prefer to lick it.

*not recommended on car batteries.

[leveymg]

8. Thought that might produce a nibble

Or a bite. Usually it's just the one that got away.

[Mnpaul]

11. I prefer to use a voltmeter

they can be had for under $10. Bouncing a lipo battery can be a very stupid idea. I hate it when people avoid the obvious, effective solution and encourage people to do stupid things.

[shaayecanaan]

20. if I drop it on someone's head

would that constitute assault and battery?

[leveymg]

22. I've been advised by my physician to cut back on my assault.

A side benefit is I don't have to roll around as much.

[Warren DeMontague]

5. I prefer to put the battery in my device, turn it on, see if it's working, and then bounce THAT.

Not only do I not save money on batteries, I break all my stuff, too!

[Mnpaul]

12. The secret way to check your remote control

no bouncing required - look at it through your camera. The camera picks up light you can't see and alters it so you can see it. It may not work on all cameras but it works on most of them.

[demwing]

21. Or you could point it toward its device and click

if it works...well then it works!

[flamin lib]

7. Its not important anyway. Devices don't run on electricity, they run on smoke.

Once the smoke gets out they stop working and nothing makes em work again.

[HassleCat]

9. Pre-solid state

That's why I liked vacuum tubes. Unlike transistors or ICs, the smoke usually escapes from a capacitor or choke or something, not from the tube itself.

[PeoViejo]

14. Magic Blue Smoke

As an experimenter, I have had many encounters.

[Gore1FL]

17. 20 minutues after the electronic devices lose their smoke lose smoke

It's heart rate will already start to drop back towards normal levels!!

[cloudbase]

18. Always keep extra in the tool box.

[greiner3]

10. This would be difficult doing this at home;

Plus, at what height will a battery be damaged if dropped.

[GoneFishin]

13. If a battery is really bad you will see a puddle of electrons leaking out of your electronic

device.

[The Jungle 1]

15. mess

I hate when that happens. What a mess. If you scoop them up ya can put um back in with a small funnel. But you always loose a few.

[GoneFishin]

16. LOL. I know it.

[El Shaman]

19. Kinda like me ,

but when I need charging - I have no bounce!