It is a system of two voltaic piles in parallel in which the electromotive force between each of the faces of the zinc plate and the closest face of the graphite are used.
This arrangement of the electrodes, together with the fact that they are quite close together and have a large surface area, gives the voltaic pile slight internal resistance and, on using small resistance circuits, it delivers very intense currents, albeit for a short time.
The value of the electromotive force of the fresh pile is approximately 1.96 volts, but it decreases rapidly.