Low Power Absorbtion Help

[PhoenixGirl]

Hi all!

 

I've been trying to figure out a way to build a very simple capacitor bank that could absorb power and maintain it for a short period of time. Since I'm not that power savvy so I'm only trying it with a a 9V battery...at first

 

Any suggestions on how I should go about starting this daunting task? Much appreciated!

[TonyMcC]

To store the maximum amout of energy connect the capacitors in parallel. If the capacitors are polarised (marked +ve and -ve) connect all +ve trminals together and all -ve terminals together. Connect your battery via a resistor and if your capacitors are polarised make sure the +ve battery terminal is connected to the +ve terminals of your capacitor bank. With the sort of capacitors you are likely to have don't expect to do much with the stored energy. If your capacitors are marked with a working voltage make sure its at least as large as your battery voltage. Have fun, but take care should you wish to experiment with larger voltages.

[John Cuthber]

"To store the maximum amout of energy connect the capacitors in parallel."

Why?

In particular, there are some nice big capacitors used for energy storage that are only rated for a few volts. If you connected them in parallel and hooked them to a 9 volt battery you would destroy them.

 

I think it would be more useful to ask what, exactly, the OP wants from this set up.

[TonyMcC]

For capacitors in parallel the total capacitance is the sum of the individual capacitors (the opposite case to resistors). More capacitance gives the ability to store more energy.

I mentioned the need to check the working voltage of the capacitors which is also known as the rated voltage. http://www.electronics-tutorials.com/basics/working-voltage-capacitance.htm

It would be nice to know what the OP has in mind - but it seemed to me quite likely that she is just experimenting.

A rechargeable battery might be better if she just wants to store a useful amount of energy.

Edited January 19, 2011 by TonyMcC

[PhoenixGirl]

Wow, thank you so much for your fast responses!! I should tell you that my father is a mechanical engineer and I've been leaning towards going into electrical when I graduate from high school. We have a mess of small motors, boards, various types of batteries, capacitors, inductors and resistors in our garage so my friend and my friend and I always like to mess around with them. We're to try to power a very small 6V motor with capacitors.

 

My father actually gave us a ?regulator chip? for the battery so it should only be 5V. We took a 24ohms resistor for the capacitors (as Tony said) but have yet to decide on which capacitors to use. I found they make super capacitors - would that be more ideal to hold a charge for a short amount of time? http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/385963561/super_capacitor_5V_1F.html was one in particular I was thinking about ordering since Tony mentioned it needed to match the working voltage. How many would I need to place in parallel, or should I say how do I figure out how many I need?

 

 

 

I tried the link you sent me Tony but it didn't seem to work, but thank you!!

 

I will send you a video when we can get this working. Thank you all so very much.

[John Cuthber]

If you got two and put them in series then they would have an overall working voltage of 10 volts so the 9 volt battery (without a regulator) would be a reasonable match.

And, for Tony's benefit.

Those two capacitors, charged to 5 volts each, will hold exactly the same amount of energy whether they are in series or in parallel.

[TonyMcC]

 

And, for Tony's benefit.

Those two capacitors, charged to 5 volts each, will hold exactly the same amount of energy whether they are in series or in parallel.

Yes, but if they were rated at 10V so that they could both be charged to 10V when connected in parallel you would have 4 times the energy content.

 

To store the maximum amout of energy connect the capacitors in parallel.. If your capacitors are marked with a working voltage make sure its at least as large as your battery voltage. Have fun, but take care should you wish to experiment with larger voltages.

I think this is reasonably clear.