Shockingly Chemical

In this semilab, students will discover how chemical reactions generate electricity and how electricity can drive chemical change. Through hands-on experiments, they will build batteries, measure voltage and current, analyze redox reactions, and perform electrolysis, connecting theory directly to real energy technologies like fuel cells and rechargeable batteries.
Students will also explore electroplating, learning how electricity can deposit thin metal coatings onto surfaces. Using simple electrochemical setups, they will plate metals such as copper onto objects and investigate how factors like current, time, and solution composition affect the quality and thickness of the coating.