Whether it is for a mobile phone or an iPod, the modern way of life relies upon rechargeable batteries. The first steps along this path were taken by the French physicist Gaston Plante (1834-1889).
Working in Paris in 1859, Plante invented the lead- acid cell. His device comprised a coil of lead for the negative plate and a coil of lead oxide for the positive plate; these were separated by rubber strips and bathed in a bath of dilute sulfuric acid. The sulfuric acid reacts with the lead, releasing electrons that pass to the positive plate, hence generating current. Existing cells ceased to produce current when the chemical reactants were spent. But, in the Plante arrangement, the reaction is reversed when current is added to the cell from an outside source, and in so doing the battery is recharged.
Within a year, Plante had fitted nine of these units into a protective box, producing a battery capable of generating a significant current. Being made of lead, these early rechargeable batteries were inconvenient for handheld applications, for which alternative celts were subsequently developed. Thomas Edison later developed an alkaline storage battery, using nickel- iron and nickel-cadmium cells. Iron-zinc batteries have since become popular, and are two to three times more efficient than the lead cell.
But Plante's cell found one very important use, where high currents are vital and weight issues are less pressing—the electric car. Lead-acid batteries remain the commonest type of vehicle battery to this day. The scions of Plante's invention are now linchpins of modern society.
