Bounce a battery on its end to determine its charge ??

[Sionyn]

 density possibly,diffrent brand may be the cause of it ?    

[smashedProton]

Well I have no idea what he is on about, but batteries do get lighter after they are used up.  E=mc^2 and such.  The mass difference is negligible for this though...

[SeanB]

It does enable you to tell the difference between a good cell and a fake one though.......

[Legit-Design]

Bad battery has already started the process of leaking it's internals out? This makes it push out the terminal and make it more springy?

I would also like to see tests with the same kind of battery, one still new and the other one drained, preferably from same package. To make it more scientific buy a 8 pack of those and divide them up for serious testing.

[mikeselectricstuff]

If a genuine effect, it could be a change in viscosity - a fluid that can move around inside will cause damping, and make it bounce less.

[AlfBaz]

Maybe we can re-instate the phlogiston theory!! 

[EEVblog]

It was just ludicrous to try this experiment on two different brand batteries 

[Stonent]

CHARGE YOUR CELLPHONE WITH AN ORANGE!
 

[EEVblog]

I was going to go all scientific on this and do controlled discharges and controlled drops on different brands etc, but then thought I'd try it quickly to see if it's like the video. I figured there wouldn't be much in it, if anything, but it turns out it does work and the difference is as obvious as shown in the video.
My next step after that was to try and do some vibrational response analysis of the batteries, but I don't have the proper gear for that any more.

[Corporate666]

The video is a joke guys


You can see it cuts away just before he drops the Energizer battery, so it's not a battery anymore... just something that looks like one.

I think it's like the old "did you know that, statistically, if more than 2 of the lines on the palm of your hand intersect, it means you are in the top 5% in IQ?"

then you laugh as all the people stare at their palms inquisitively

[Guppzor]

If this test does show that your battery is flat or low in charge, here is a quick and easy way to recharge it:

[EEVblog]

If this test does show that your battery is flat or low in charge, here is a quick and easy way to recharge it:

 

[c4757p]

Thank you for that.....

[AlfBaz]

Its not just one dumbass, there are credits at the end, it took a team!! ... I better rethink my use of electrical tape

[EEVblog]

The video is a joke guys
You can see it cuts away just before he drops the Energizer battery, so it's not a battery anymore... just something that looks like one.

No, it's real, I tried it, it works exactly as claimed.

[TerraHertz]

If this test does show that your battery is flat or low in charge, here is a quick and easy way to recharge it:

HA ha ....
I thought he must be serious, ie a nutter, till he said "It's called electrical tape because it conducts electricity."
So really he's a joker with an advanced degree in keeping a straight face.

Sending up all the lunatic 'tubers out there.

[c4757p]

I thought he must be serious, ie a nutter, till he said "It's called electrical tape because it conducts electricity."

"Don't you hate it when you go to use a flashlight, or a TOS phaser...."

[mariush]

I was going to go all scientific on this and do controlled discharges and controlled drops on different brands etc, but then thought I'd try it quickly to see if it's like the video. I figured there wouldn't be much in it, if anything, but it turns out it does work and the difference is as obvious as shown in the video.
My next step after that was to try and do some vibrational response analysis of the batteries, but I don't have the proper gear for that any more.

Dave, I think you would have to do a sort of double blind test.

You KNOW which one is dead subconsciously and you may let the battery drop slightly differently than the full battery... you need to go full mythbusters and build a robot to  with a hand which would drop the battery from an exact height... in a box so it won't be affected by air conditioning airflow etc

[Dajgoro]

I went to try the same thing with Camelion C size alkaline batteries that I use in my multimeter.
I recently bough new ones of the same kind and replaced the dead ones.
And I was surprised by the results! I got the exact opposite effect. The charged battery bounced, and the empty didn't??? What is going on here?

[Kremmen]

Well I have no idea what he is on about, but batteries do get lighter after they are used up.  E=mc^2 and such.  The mass difference is negligible for this though...

Erm.. surely these cells are not nuclear powered? If not, E=mc^2 does not apply as chemical reactions take place in the electron shells only. Reduction/oxidation - basically exchange of electrons in more or less complicated ways. Mass is not converted however.
Offhand i would say that the cell weight cannot change as the total number of electrons should be constant - they just swap electrodes as the cell is used up. Closed circuit and all that...

[Fraser]

Even if there is any validity to this drop test, I advise against such treatment of modern Alkaline cells. Even without abuse some brands have a habit of leaking and doing damage to equipment, even when not discharged. I personally have had a lot of problems with Duracell/Procell and no longer buy the brand.

An alkaline battery is constructed with the positive terminal formed by the cells metal shell. The negative electrode is inserted from the bottom and secured in place using a crimping method. An insulating electrolyte seal is located between the negative contact and the positive shell.

The manufacturer of Duracell (Gillette) admitted to me that excessive pressure on the bottom of the cell can lead to seal failure and leakage of electrolyte. This comment pertained specifically to use in D cell Maglite torches.

If you start dropping a good cells negative end onto hard surfaces, do not be surprised if you cause the cell to leak at some point in its life due to seal failure. Dropping any form of cell or battery onto hard surfaces isn't a bright idea.

[smashedProton]

Well I have no idea what he is on about, but batteries do get lighter after they are used up.  E=mc^2 and such.  The mass difference is negligible for this though...

Erm.. surely these cells are not nuclear powered? If not, E=mc^2 does not apply as chemical reactions take place in the electron shells only. Reduction/oxidation - basically exchange of electrons in more or less complicated ways. Mass is not converted however.
Offhand i would say that the cell weight cannot change as the total number of electrons should be constant - they just swap electrodes as the cell is used up. Closed circuit and all that...

No, I disagree.  The energy is mass inside the chemical bonds.  AA batteries hold about 5kj of energy so we are only arguing about 55E-15 kg.

[Legit-Design]

Kipkay says the cells start to form gas inside which makes it more springy. Sounds plausible.

I think we need x-ray comparison of cells and more scientific testing. 

[SArepairman]

cut it open under water and observe for gas bubbles if you wanna see if its comrpessed gas

[Fraser]

To see what is going on you need to analyse what distortion occurs in the flat negative contact upon impact with the surface. It may well be the case that the negative cap becomes more domed or flexible as the cell ages. Think of it like a drum skin.

Have people tried dropping the cells on their positive nipple to see what happens ? That is a part of the sell and may not flex so easily when dropped.