108 
MR. DANIELL ON VOLTAIC COMBINATIONS. 
experiments during- the last year, which will prevent my giving you such full details 
of some of the results as I could have desired, although I have been careful to repeat 
all those in which measures are of fundamental importance. 
I shall first beg to direct your attention to an arrangement which I purpose to 
distinguish by the name of the Dissected Battery ; it has answered an analogous 
purpose to me of one of those optical instruments, by looking through which a mul- 
titude of confused lines assume a regular disposition ; and many detached facts, well 
known before, have become clearer and of new importance, from their connexion and 
comparison with each other by its means. The battery consists of ten glass cells, a 
section of one of which is represented in the accompanying figures. 
(i a , b, c, d), Plate VIII. fig. 1. is a foot of solid glass, containing a cavity (e,f, g, h ), 
the upper part of which is fitted with a stopper (g, h ). Through this stopper the stems 
of the two plates (i,j, k, l, m, n) pass into the lower part of the cavity, which is divided 
into two cells by the partition (o, p ), and each of which contains mercury, into which 
the wires respectively dip. This arrangement admits of the plates being changed at 
pleasure with little difficulty. The plates maybe connected together, or with the plates 
of other cells, by means of wires (p, q,) passing through the lateral holes ( t , u) and 
dipping also into the cups of mercury. To the glass foot thus arranged a glass shade 
(v, w, .r, y, z, z) is fitted by grinding, and constitutes a cell for the reception of the 
liquid. A graduated glass jar (A, B) may be suspended over either plate by means 
of a brass clip, proceeding from a rod placed by the side of the cell in the manner 
represented by fig. 2, which is a perspective drawing of a circular arrangement of 
ten such cells. 
Fig. 3. represents the section of a cell which is adapted to the same purposes, but 
is less expensive in construction. It is supported in a perforated table (C, D) by its 
projecting rim ( v , w, y, z), and the stems of the plates pass through the glass stopper 
(a, b, c, d) into the exterior mercury cups (o, p ), by means of which all the necessary 
connexions may be made. 
The active elements of the circuit which I adopted as standards of comparison 
were, for the metals, platinum and amalgamated zinc plates of the dimensions 
3 inches by 1 inch ; and for the electrolyte, water acidulated with sulphuric acid in 
the ratio of 100 parts by volume of the former to 2| of the latter (sp. gr. 1027'5), 
proportions which I adopted for the purpose of connecting some of my experiments 
with yours*. 
This dilute acid was almost without local action upon the amalgamated zinc. When 
the plate was wholly immersed, its surface became, after some time, covered with 
bubbles of hydrogen gas, which strongly adhered to it ; but after twenty-four hours 
it was found to have lost but a very small fraction of a grain of its weight. The force 
of heterogeneous adhesion, by which hydrogen and other gases are thus retained upon 
the surface of metals, I am disposed to regard as exerting a very important influence 
* Experimental Researches, x. 1127. 1128. 
