Lincoln-Way East Students Develop Prototype Battery At Argonne

FRANKFORT, IL — On Oct. 30, 19 Lincoln-Way East students went to Argonne National Laboratory in order to develop a battery. The district said the group was divided into three teams and each team, with the guidance of an Argonne facilitator, developed a prototype battery that will be used to power a toy car.

The teams then came back together to share design approaches and come up with a cohesive design to see if their battery would power the car. The district said students learned the fundamental components of a battery (metals, membrane, and electrolyte) and how they come together to generate electricity.

Smaller groups of students within a team collected data, looked for trends, and reported back to the team. The team then reviewed the small group’s recommendations and, through scientific argumentation, came to a consensus about that aspect of the battery’s design, the district said.

“Thank you so much for putting this together and you giving us this opportunity! It was really
fun to work with other students to accomplish one goal. I hope to do something like this
again,” junior Erica Strojny said in a release.

“Thank you for the opportunity today at Argonne. It was really cool, and my favorite part
was problem solving to make the best battery we could,” said senior Ryan Gibbons.

“Thank you for letting me go on this trip! It was really cool to see all the actual scientists
around the cafeteria and buildings!” said sophomore Leyla Eames.

Chemistry teachers Shane Tucker, Beth Swaney and Carlie Premo sponsored this event.