Do you know that there is an electric bell at Oxford University that has been ringing for so many years. Although the sound is very weak, it is indeed one of the most durable electric bells in the world . Because of this, this Oxford electric bell has now become the object of research by many scientists.
The incredible Oxford electric bell
They found that two dry batteries and actually drove the electric bell to ring 0 billion times in 182, but so far no one knows the structure of the battery . Next, let us take a look at the magic of this Oxford electric bell.
The electric bell placed in the laboratory
The mysterious Oxford electric bell
First of all, you can observe the appearance of this electric bell. From a modern perspective, it undoubtedly looks very weird. The two on it look like "candles" The thing is actually the main power that drives the electric bell, which is dry battery . Under the dry cell, there are two bells made of brass , with a metal ball suspended by a wire in the middle.
It can be seen that the structure of this electric bell is relatively simple, and it is not directly exposed to the air , but is protected by the outer glass cover.
Brass Bell and Metal Ball
It is worth mentioning that everyone must want to know if we can hear the ringing sound it has made over the years when we get close to this electric bell. Obviously we can't hear it, because the sound emitted by this electric bell is very weak, only hertz or so .
In this case, how can we be sure that it has sounded so many times in more than 180 years? According to researchers who have been observing, they use special monitoring equipment attached to the outer wall of the glass cover to monitor this weak ringtone.
A small metal ball that is always swinging slightly
According to records, this so-called Oxford electric bell may be an experiment of a certain teacher in the university . He originally formed this Oxford electric bell after purchasing related equipment, and from 1840 started this experiment with the purpose of studying battery endurance.
However, due to the limited data, key information such as how long the experiment will last cannot be found. can only say that no one expected that the electric bell device forgotten in the laboratory would have such a long life .
Clarendon Laboratory at Oxford University
When the news spread that the Oxford electric bell had rung more than 10 billion times in more than 180 years, many scientists went to Oxford University to observe the Oxford electric bell. wanted to understand this seemingly simple bell. The internal structure of the electric bell and see why two dry batteries have so much energy .
The structure of the dry battery is unknown.
In fact, it can be seen from the purpose of the experiment. It was to test the durability of the dry battery. So everyone thinks that the key to the Oxford electric bell lies in the two candle-like dry batteries .
Dry cell battery with surface covered with sulfur
In this case, did they directly lift the glass cover and take out the dry cell battery for research?
Obviously, if does this, then this 182-year-old bell-ringing experiment will be forced to terminate . This is not the structure that people want to see. So no matter how curious everyone is, they can only observe outside the glass cover.
The Oxford electric bell with "ancient history"
Since the internal structure of the dry battery cannot be observed through the glass cover, scientists can only make relevant guesses.
The first guess is that this long-lasting knocking has little to do with the dry battery, but is related to the structure of the electric bell..
When we introduced the electric bell in the previous article, we also mentioned that the bottom is composed of two electric bells made of brass and a small metal ball in the middle. Therefore, scientists speculate that the metal ball will bring some electrons with it during the swing, and will be electrostatically repelled . In this way, the small metal ball can swing for a long time without relying on the dry battery itself.
Schematic diagram of the movement principle of charged objects
The second theory is that the Oxford electric bell can produce sound for a long time. The energy still comes from the dry battery . Without its driver, this experiment would not have been able to last for so long. As for why two dry batteries can contain so much energy, they made the following discussion.
First of all, when purchasing the dry batteries used in the experiment, the experimenter should have carefully selected , and as a person who knows this field well, he should have already considered the durability of the battery. So in essence, the quality of these two dry batteries should be , which is no problem.
Schematic diagram of the internal structure of the dry battery
Secondly, it is the role of the external glass cover of the Oxford electric bell. Its existence puts the dry battery in a relatively closed space. In this way, it is less affected by the outside world , which is invisibly extended. own life span. And judging from the weak sound made by the Oxford electric bell for 182 years, although it has been ringing, , the energy required to make this sound is also very small. . In this case, it is indeed possible for dry batteries to drive an electric bell to ring for so many years.
Of course, in addition to these two more mainstream statements, there are other speculations. But no matter what, before the glass cover of the Oxford electric bell is opened, we may never get the real answer .
It is a dry battery that is almost isolated from the outside world.
It is worth mentioning that the continuous sound of the Oxford electric bell has made many people who insist that " perpetual motion machine " can be manufactured very excited, because in their view, This device already has the characteristics of "perpetual motion" .
So, is the Oxford electric bell a perpetual motion machine?
Conception diagram of a perpetual motion machine
Is the Oxford electric bell a perpetual motion machine?
As we mentioned above, scientists have given relevant guesses, but no matter which guess it is, it can be proved that the Oxford electric bell is still driven by relevant energy, and its sound is closely related to the dry battery on the upper end. . So from this point of view, it does not conform to the principle of perpetual motion.
Because a perpetual motion machine is actually a device that does not consume any energy but can always emit energy , which essentially violates the law of conservation of energy .
Perpetual motion experimental device
And over the years, humans have always had hopes for perpetual motion machines. People like Leonardo da Vinci, Joule , etc. all believe that this kind of device can be developed. But from a practical point of view, perpetual motion machines are absolutely impossible to appear . Researching it is a waste of energy, so many countries have explicitly prohibited people from applying for patents on perpetual motion experimental devices.
Data show that Chinese Academy of Sciences proposed in the first issue of " Scientific Bulletin " that "perpetual motion motion" is not feasible, so that relevant researchers should not continue to spend their energy on studying perpetual motion machines. The U.S. court ruled in 1990 that the patent department would no longer accept any patent applications for perpetual motion machines.
A device that imitates a perpetual motion machine
It can be seen that the mainstream consciousness in the scientific community is scornful of such things as perpetual motion machines. After all, there is too much evidence to prove that this device is imagined out of thin air. Over the years, so many scientists have entered this field, but in the end "came back disappointed", which is enough to prove that the experiments related to "perpetual motion machines" are also very complicated.
As for the Oxford electric bell we are talking about today, whether it is from the simple structure or its original striking principle, has nothing to do with the perpetual motion machine . It's just that people have hopes for it.
A device that imitates a perpetual motion machine
It is worth mentioning that the Oxford electric bell does prove the durability of dry batteries, but this type of battery is no longer suitable for the development of today's society. Especially now that new energy vehicles are in the spotlight, people are committed to developing a better battery.
The number of new energy vehicles is growing rapidly
Battery types of new energy vehicles
At present, the batteries of new energy vehicles mainly include the following types, namely lead-acid batteries , nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells , among which lead-acid batteries have a very long history of more than 100 years. However, its large size, low energy, and short lifespan make it an antique that has lagged behind the times in the eyes of many people.
Ni-MH battery has better service life and other characteristics than , so the price is relatively high. However, under the influence of lithium-ion batteries in recent years, they have basically been eliminated by the automobile market. is more used in the field of power tools than .
"Petite" nickel-metal hydride battery
As for the most popular lithium-ion battery , its high voltage, high energy density and other characteristics are undoubtedly more in line with the needs of today's social development . And judging from the current background of energy conservation and environmental protection, the competitive advantages of lithium-ion batteries are even more obvious.
data shows that under the same volume and weight, the storage capacity of lithium batteries is 1.6 times that of nickel-metal hydride batteries. From a theoretical perspective, the current technical level has only developed 25% of the total power of lithium batteries.
The main power battery used in new energy vehicles is lithium battery
The last fuel cell is not essentially a storage of electrical energy, but a small power generation device. Its fuel is mainly methane , methanol , etc. , can reduce pollution like lithium-ion batteries.
Schematic diagram of the power generation process of fuel cells
In short, batteries have changed their appearance in the long-term development, and if humans realize controllable nuclear fusion in the future, batteries will usher in new innovations . But in any case, simple dry batteries like the Oxford electric bell can be regarded as the starting point of our exploration.
