History of the battery his iron scalpel, the leg twitched. Galvani believed the energy that drove this contraction came from the leg itself, and called it "animal electricity". However, Alessandro Volta, a friend and fellow scientist, disagreed, believing this phenomenon was caused by two different metals joined together by a moist intermediary. He verified this hypothesis through experiment, and published the results in 1791. In 1800, Volta invented the first true battery, which came to be known as the voltaic pile. The voltaic pile consisted of pairs of copper and zinc discs piled on top of each other, separated by a layer of cloth
Battery electric multiple unit without the construction of unsightly overhead cables." He added that developments in batteries are such that it might soon be cost-effective to swap diesel engines for battery or hybrid devices, therefore saving the vast cost of installing power lines above every section of track. On page 37 of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Long Term Rail Strategy document of October 2017, it states that in 2020 a trial of new class 777 Merseyrail electric 3rd rail/battery trains will be undertaken in view to incorporate two stretches of unelectrified track onto the Merseyrail network. The sections are on the Wirral