LIGHTNING, ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS AND

ELECTROCUTION

LIGHTNING

Read the following article carefully and then answer the questions.

Lightning smashes into the Earth 100 times per second, generating more than
4 billion megawatts of continuous power – about 100 000 times more electrical power than
all of Australia’s power stations generate!!

But lightning also protects us from charged radiation from deep space. The ground has a
negative charge, while the Earth’s upper atmosphere has a positive charge. When a
positive particle zooms in from the depths of the universe, it is repelled away from the
Earth by the positively charged atmosphere. The 100 lightning bolts each second
constantly rebuild the charge barrier, this natural Star Wars shield, and protect us.

Your average lightning bolt lasts for about one fifth of a second. The whole thing starts
with a big dark storm cloud. Somehow – the lightning scientists still do not know – the
cloud gets a huge positive charge on the side closest to the ground. But remember the
ground has negative charge. Opposites attract, and positive charge loves to merge with
negative charge.

Lightning bolts occur in two stages. In the first stage, a relatively slow, small, skinny,
almost invisible bolt of lightning - called the down stroke – creeps down from a cloud to
the ground in steps between 1 to 200 metres long, blasting a pathway through the air at
150 kilometres per second. When the down stroke is
About 15 metres from the ground an enormous charge rushes out of the ground back up to
the cloud. This is the second stage – the return stroke – that is what you see. It is only a
few centimetres in diameter, but it carries a million times more energy than the down
stroke. The return stroke rockets back up to the cloud at about 150 000 kilometres per
second, or half the speed of light. It travels up inside the hole that was blasted in the
atmosphere by the down stroke. The temperature inside the return stroke reaches 30 000
0
C – that’s six times hotter than the surface of the Sun!

Lightning kills about 100 people in the USA each year. The outdoor life can be dangerous.
If you are in a thunderstorm, and you can feel your hair standing on end, or you can hear
buzzing noises, you are in the powerful electric field of the strike zone. Get out quickly.
The first rule is go, go, go.

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Now even if lightning misses you and hits the ground nearby, it still sets up enormous
electric fields. If your feet are far apart, there can be a potential of several thousand
volts between them, which is enough to kill you. The bigger the distance, the bigger the
voltage. So if you lie on the ground, the voltage between your head and your feet could be
20 000 volts. So crouch down into a tight little ball, and keep your feet together. In fact
if you really want to be cool, you could squat on one foot, so electricity can’t come in
through one foot, through your heart and out through the other foot. So the second rule
is – get down, and make like a one legged rock!!

If your clothes are totally wet, they will carry electricity better than your human flesh.
So don’t just get down, get wet! You may get a few skin burns, but the electricity will miss
your heart. If your skin is wet you can even have the clothes burnt off your body, which is
left totally unharmed, but pretty shocked. The lightning energy heats up the water on your
skin instantaneously and turns it into steam that expands and blows your clothes off your
body, leaving it unharmed. Often you can be knocked unconscious, or even have a
temporary ministroke. Ten French and German tourists who hide under a bush during a
thunderstorm in Trento, Italy, in 1970, had their clothes stripped off them by a lightning
bolt – at least that is their story!

If a tree is totally wet, it’s fairly safe to get under it. A tree is nature’s natural lightning
conductor. The electricity will hit the top of the tree, and run down through the layer of
water on the leaves and the bark, and then into the ground. But if the bark is dry, the
electricity will get to the ground either by jumping off the bark to you or by tunnelling
into the tree trunk. The sap in the trunk can boil instantaneously, and explode with force
of 250 kilograms of TNT. In Darwin in 1987, 10 joggers were thrown off their feet when
lightning shattered a nearby tree. One man actually stopped breathing, but was revived by
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. In England in 1947, an 11-year-old girl after her skull was
cracked open by a flying piece of bark. So make sure your tree is all wet – one quarter of
all people killed by lightning were hiding under a tree. But if you don’t feel lucky, avoid the
tree and just get wet.

Any metal outdoors in a storm is dangerous. So get rid of your metal golf clubs, aluminium
cricket bats and even your medallions. Even fishing rods are a good target.

Lightning rods are there to give a safe pathway for the electrical energy to the ground. So
a good lightning rod has a sharp point at the top end, which should be several metres taller
than the house. The other end should be buried deep into the ground. The energy goes
through the rod straight into the ground completely bypassing your house.

In St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the lightning rods are as thick as your arm. But during a
huge storm in 1772 the iron bars glowed a dull red as they carried the lightning energy

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down to the ground. If only they had realised that electricity can make things glow, they
could have invented the light bulb one hundred years before Edison.
Before lightning rods were common, and science replaced superstition, churchgoers
had to ring church bells during thunderstorms, to appease the anger of God. But, in
France, in the 33 years between 1753 and 1786, a hundred bellringers died from lightning
that struck the tall pointy bell tower and then ran down the wet rope. So to stop this
crazy sacrifice, the French Parliament had to make a law forbidding the ringing of bells
during thunderstorms.
Telecom Australia had 326 reports of telephone related lightning injuries in the
eight-year period 1977 to 1985. In a lightning storm, you should stay about one metre
away from chimneys and electrical appliances, which should be switched off.
In fact, you should pull the plug out of the wall socket. You certainly should not use
a telephone, because the lightning could get you.
Thunder is the noise that lightning makes as it blasts through the air. When a plane
breaks the sound barrier, it moves at only 1 kilometre every 3 seconds. But lightning can
move half a million times faster, so it makes a huge tearing noise when it pushes the air
out of the way. You can use thunder to measure how far away a bolt of lightning is. The
light from the bolt travels to your eyes at the speed of light, about 330 000 kilometres
per second, which is virtually instantaneous. However the sound travels much more slowly,
at only 0.3 kilometres per second. So as soon as you see the lightning flash, count the
number of seconds until you hear the thunder. Then divide the number of seconds by
three and that’s the distance in kilometres away that the lightning blast was.
Sometimes you just cannot avoid lightning. Park Ranger, Roy Sullivan of the USA has
been hit seven times! Not unexpectedly he changed his job.

Questions to answer:

1. How long does your average lightning bolt last?

2. What becomes positive? Negatively charged in a thundercloud?
3. Describe the two stages of a lightning bolt.
4. How fast and how hot is the return stroke?
5. How many people on average die each year in the USA due to lightning strike?
6. Describe all the things to do if you get stuck in a lightning/thunder storm?
7. If you hear thunder 9 seconds after seeing the lightning flash, calculate how far away
the centre of the storm is, in kilometres.
8. Describe a lightning rod, and how it protects buildings.

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NSW Department of Education and Training
and NSW TAFE Commission

Urgent Advice: Weather conditions with a possibility of lightning

The following is based on advice from the Bureau of Meteorology and DET guidelines in relation to
weather conditions with a possibility of lightning:

• Seek shelter in a hard-top (metal bodied) vehicle or a solid building, but avoid small open
structures or fabric tents.

• In buildings stay well clear of windows, doors, electrical appliances, pipes and other metal
fixtures such as hand basins.

• Where possible, close down any utilities that may cause additional hazards such as electrical
appliances.

• In vehicles, close windows, avoid touching metal parts, do not drive and avoid parking under
trees or other tall objects

• Avoid water and objects that conduct electricity (eg golf clubs, umbrellas, metal fences, metal
baseball bats).

• Do not stay in open spaces or under tall objects such as trees, poles or lighting towers.

• If no shelter is available crouch down, feet close together with head tucked down. If in a group
spread out, keeping people several metres apart.

• Avoid using the telephone

• Remain sheltered for at least 30 minutes after the last sound of thunder.

Remember, lightning victims can be revived with CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) even though
there is no pulse.

More weather related safety advice is available at:

• the Bureau of Meteorology web site http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/nsw/sevwx/safety_tips.shtml.

• Guidelines for schools and TAFE colleges and campuses – Management of Serious Incidents
(section 2.10)
http://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/seriinci/manaseri/index.htm

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What causes lightning?

1. When you walk on a nylon carpet and then touch a metal doorknob or ruler, you will
notice a tingling sensation (try it in the library!) Why?
2. On a windy day when you get out of a car and close the door you get zapped. Why?

The answers to these questions and the work in this module will help us understand “What
causes lightning?”

All matter is made up of atoms. In this module you will investigate atoms using a simple
model of an atom. Atoms contain the following particles: protons, neutrons and electrons.
Complete the table below using your previous knowledge or research:

Particle Where found in the Electrical charge

atom
Proton
Neutron
Electron

Draw a diagram of the simple model of an atom with: 4 protons, 5 neutrons and 4 electrons

A MODEL IS NEVER THE SAME AS THE REAL THING.

Describe a few differences between your model and a real atom.

The model you have just drawn shows a neutral atom. The number of positive charges
(protons) EQUALS the number of negative charges (electrons)

The rest of this section will ignore neutrons because they have no charge. Imagine an
atom with 7 protons and 8 electrons. Is it charged? How do you know? What charge
would it have?

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Use this information to complete the table:
Number of protons in Number of electrons in Charge on the atom
the atom the atom
12 10
17 18
13 10
1 2
20 18
8 10
3 2
39 36

Atoms are normally neutral. Look at the table and decide two ways in which the first atom
in the table could have become positive from being neutral.

1.

2.

What actually happens? If you look back to the basic structure of atoms, protons are
found in the nucleus. Electrons move about outside the nucleus. They can be attracted
away from the nucleus and go to another atom. So atoms tend to lose or gain electrons or
protons. If they gain electrons they become negatively charged. If they lose electrons
they become positively charged.

Let’s look at the second atom in the table. It has 18 electrons and 17 protons – 1 more
negative than positive. Therefore it is negatively charged. Since atoms can only lose or
gain electrons the atom must have originally had 17 protons and 17 electrons. To become
charged it gained an electron.

What about the third atom in the table? It has 10 electrons and 13 protons – 3 more
positives than negatives. Therefore it is positively charged. Since atoms tend to only lose
or gain electrons the atom must have originally had 13 protons and electrons. To become
charged it lost 3 electrons.

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Work out what happened to the other 5 atoms:

Number of protons in Number of electrons in How did it become

the atom the atom charged?
1 2
20 18
8 10
3 2
39 36

Interesting facts:

1. If a nucleus was the size of a full stop on a printed page, how far away would the
nearest electron is found?
2. Look at a 1cm3 cube of Aluminium (Al). If we increased the size of each of its
atoms to the size of one – one hundred and thousand – (as found on ice creams and
cakes), how much volume would it take up? One football field? (Imagine covering
the field with 100’s and 1000’s, and then building up to the same height as it is long!)

Answers:
1. Two rooms away most of the time.
2. The Sydney basin:
100km long x 100km wide x 100km high

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Electrostatics demonstrations

Station 1

Straighten out the sheet of newspaper. Place the newspaper on a clear, flat wall and take
your hands away. The newspaper will slip off the wall.

Now hold the newspaper against the wall and stroke it with the wooden ruler briskly. Do this
several times and always in the same direction.

Take your hands away. This time the newspaper should stick to the wall. The newspaper was
charged with electrostatic energy when it was rubbed over with the wooden ruler. It is this
charge of electrostatic energy which causes the newspaper to stick to the wall.

1. Explain this by drawing a cross section view of the newspaper and wall showing clearly the
electrostatic charges.
2. How did you determine the polarity of the charges?
3. Will this work with a plastic ruler?

On a dry day if you lift one corner of the newspaper off the wall it will fly back to the wall
when you release it. If you listen you will hear the crackle of electricity too.

Station 2

Blow the balloon up and tie it off. Hold the balloon over the head of a class friend. Does
anything happen?

Now rub the balloon several times with the woollen material. Hold the balloon over your
friend's head again. What happens this time? Can you say why?

When the balloon was rubbed with the woollen material it was charged with electrostatic
energy. It is the charge of electrostatic energy which causes the hair to stand up in this
peculiar manner.

Draw the balloon and hair showing the charges.

Is the polarity important? Why?

Station 3

Inflate the balloons and tie off their ends. Place the balloons against a wall and release
them. What happens?

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Now rub the balloons several times with a piece of woollen material (a pullover or cardigan
will serve just as well). Place the balloons against the wall and release them. What happens
this time? Can you explain why the balloons behave in this manner?

Make a drawing of what you have done and explain the result.

Station 4

Place a little soapy liquid in a bowl and practice blowing bubbles. Blow a large bubble and hold
the plastic tube about 10 cm away from it. Does any thing happen?

Blow another large bubble and after rubbing the plastic tube with woollen material hold it
near the bubble. This time the bubble will be drawn towards the plastic tube.

The electrostatic charge caused by rubbing the plastic tube with woollen material is
affecting the bubbles and making them behave in this peculiar manner.

Repeat this experiment several times and keep a check to see how much you can stretch a
bubble before it bursts.

Write a few sentences to explain what is happening to the bubbles.

Draw a picture to show what you did and show the shapes of some of the bubbles. Be sure to
include the charges.

Station 5

Cut the tissue paper into small pieces and put them into the metal dish and cover with the
perspex or glass. Rub the surface of the glass several times with a piece of material - keep
your eyes on the pieces of tissue paper.

Rub the glass very hard and the paper will jump up and stick to the glass then fall and rise
again.

When the glass was rubbed it acquired a charge which in turn caused the paper to rise. With
the aid of diagrams explain why this should happen.

9
Station 6

Charge one perspex rod with silk and balance on the watchglass as shown:

bring another charged rod near it.

1. charged perspex rod

2. charged ebonite rod

Repeat using a balanced ebonite rod.

Record your observations and make a statement about the type of force between like
charged objects and unlike charged objects.

Station 7

1. Bring a charged rod near the metal plate of an electroscope. Take it away again and
record your observations.

2. Touch a charged rod to the metal plate of an electroscope. Remove it and record your
observations. Earth it with your finger.

3. Bring a charged rod near the plate of an electroscope, earth it with your finger, then
remove firstly your finger, then the rod and record your observations and complete
the diagrams below:-

How can an electroscope be used to determine the sign of an electric charge?

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Station 8

OH and S warning: Keep well clear of the generator and wear safety goggles if involved in
the demonstration.

1. Draw what happens to several pieces of magnetic tape stuck to the dome of the Van
der Graaf generator.
2. Describe what happens to some vermiculite placed on top of the dome.
3. Observe what happens when the bulb that is “earthed” is brought near the dome.

Station 9

Turn on the tap until there is a small stream of water falling into the sink. Rub a Perspex rod
with silk and bring it near (but not touching) the stream of water. Draw what you see
happening. Try to explain why it happens.

BACKGROUND 1

All matter (solids, liquids and gases) is made up of atoms. Atoms contain a number of small
particles including electrons and protons. Electrons are negatively charged and protons have an
equal positive charge. Most materials are neutral (have a balance of negative and positive
particles). However, some materials can become charged. This happens because they lose or gain
some electrons.

When you walk on a nylon carpet, some electrons can move between the carpet and you. This
disturbs the balance between protons and electrons in you and in the carpet. You become
negatively charged and the carpet becomes positively charge. The carpet gets the opposite charge
to you. When you touch a metal doorknob, or similar, you notice a tingling sensation as your body
returns to neutral.

The experiments above can be explained using these ideas:

 Like charges repel each other

 Unlike charges attract each other

The diagram below shows the two effects explained above:

 Charged materials can attract uncharged materials

 When some materials come in contact with one another, electrons can move
from one of the materials to the other

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  Since charged objects have too much of one type of charge they will lose
the charge over time. Why? Like charges repel and unlike attract so if
there is a way for the charges to neutralise they will. If a good conductor
is near it or touches it, the charge will” leak” away quickly. This is called
earthing or grounding.

EXPLANATIONS

1. Summarise how you think materials can become electrically charged.

2. Use the background notes above to explain the results you obtained for the experiments.

3. The table below shows some results where charged rods were brought near each other and
hair. Use the results given to predict the missing results.

ROD A B C D Effect on
Hair
A ATTRACT
B REPEL
C
D REPEL

4. What could be the charges on the balls in the diagram below?

(Hint: there could be more than one answer)

Research 1

Write a short report (1-2 pages) on one of the following:

 Photocopiers use some of the principles of static electricity to work.

Describe the basic principles of photocopiers.
12
 Find out about some anti static devices in everyday life. How are they used and how do they
work?
 What are lightning rods and how do they work?
 What is an electrostatic precipitator and how does it work?
 Why are hospital trolleys and fuel tanks “earthed’?

13
Quiz 1
Multiple Choice Questions:
1. In a neutral material, the number of protons would be:
(a) equal to the number of electrons
(b) less than the number of electrons
(c) more than the number of electrons
(d) sometimes more and sometimes less than the number of electrons

2. An object became positively charged when rubbed with a cloth. The best explanation for
the is:
(a) the object obtained extra protons
(b) the object lost protons
(c) the object gained electrons
(d) the object lost electrons

3. If you rub a piece of perspex with silk it becomes positively charged. If you bring the rod
near some tiny pieces of paper they will be attracted. This means that the pieces of paper
were:
(a) negatively charged
(b) neutral
(c) negatively charged or neutral
(d) positively charged

4. Sometimes when you get out of a car you get a “shock” when you touch the door. The reason
for this is:
(a) our bodies are becoming positively charged
(b) our bodies are becoming negatively charged
(c) our bodies become neutral
(d) our bodies are absorbing electricity from the charged door.

Longer Answer Questions

5. Imagine you are on a large oval. Your car is parked nearby. An extremely bad thunderstorm
develops and it is likely that there will be much lightning. Rank the following alternatives
from safest to most dangerous and explain your choices:
 Stand near the metal goal posts
 Get in the car
 Get near the ground with your feet together

6. In a small group draw a concept map for static electricity.

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 Electrical Circuits &
Electrocution
In this unit of work, you will be investigating electric circuits and how they are used in
everyday life. The use of electricity as a source of energy has been one of the most
important technological changes of the past 100 years.

Before you start this unit, think of the appliances which could not be used without
electricity. What would your life be like without electric circuits?

Dangers of Electricity
In small groups or as a class discuss some of the dangers of having electricity in the home,
and the poor practices that can lead to someone being electrocuted. List some of the
problems/dangers to be aware of when using electricity around the home.

The activities that follow investigate the scientific ideas connected with electric circuits.

Circuit Symbols and Diagrams

As you could imagine complex circuits would be very difficult and time consuming to sketch. So
Electricians use a code to show the components and the way they are linked into circuits. This code
involves a range of symbols. Only some basic symbols will be introduced here.

Component Symbol

Battery

Switch

Light globe

Connecting wire

Resistor

Ammeter

Voltmeter

15
Circuit practice:-

1. 3 circuits are set up around the room. Try to draw the circuit diagram. Ask for
help if needed.

2. (i) 3 circuit diagrams are drawn below. Try to wire up each circuit BUT
DO NOT TURN IT ON!

(ii) Label all the parts of the circuit on the diagrams.

Testing different materials:-

Set up a circuit as below and place the test material in the gap.

16
If the material allows the electricity to flow through it, lighting the lamp, it is a
conductor. If it does not allow it to pass through, then it is an insulator.

Copy and complete the table below:-

Sample Lamp Conductor or Insulator

(lights/does not light)

Conclusion:

17
Converting Electrical Energy

Although there are many possible sources of energy in the home or in industry, electricity
is especially useful. It can easily be converted into other types of energy, such as heat,
light, sound and movement (kinetic energy).

Complete the table below, giving examples of devices at home that produce the forms of
energy listed:-

Type of energy given out. Example 1 Example 2 Example 3

Heat Oven
Sound Radio
Light Television
Kinetic (movement) Electric lawn mower

You may have chosen a light bulb as one of your examples. It changes electrical energy
into light, but produces a lot of heat at the same time.

This happens when a current goes through the filament of a bulb. This is a metal wire,
supported by thicker wires in the middle of a glass bulb. Tungsten is often used for the
filament wire, because it can reach a high temperature without melting.

The wire needs to be really hot to emit white light. Thus the bulb must be filled with a
gas which will not burn at this temperature (an inert gas), such as nitrogen or argon.

18
Exercises:

1. Connect up the following circuit:

a) Make sure both globes are identical

b) Change the setting on the power supply from A to F (2 -12
V) and describe what happens to the lamps.
c) Unscrew one of the bulbs and describe what happens,
CAUTION IT MAY BE HOT!
d) Repeat steps a) – c) with 2 different globes.

2. Connect up the following circuit:

e) Make sure both globes are identical

f) Change the setting on the power supply from A to F (2 -12
V) and describe what happens to the lamps.
g) Unscrew one of the bulbs and describe what happens,
CAUTION IT MAY BE HOT!
h) Repeat steps e) – g) with 2 different globes.

3. Which way would you wire up your house lights? Car head and tail lights? Why?

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 Current moves around a circuit.
(Current is really a movement of
electrons). When the switch is closed
(turned ‘on’), all the electrons begin to
move at once everywhere around the
circuit.

The number of electrons that flow

per second (current) is measured by
an ammeter placed in series (ie: in line
with the circuit).

Does it matter where in the circuit

you connect the ammeter?

The energy difference per charge or

voltage is measured by a voltmeter
connected either side of the battery
or lamp.

In series, (in line) the lamps must

share each electrons’ energy. The
more lamps, the more sharing,
therefore all appear duller.

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 In parallel (in ‘piggyback’) each lamp is
fed the same number of electrons (as
if it was alone) so that each glows
equally as brightly.

Note, that the battery runs out of

energy faster

Electrical Quantities

Quantity Measures: Measured by:

Symbol Units
Current Number of I amperes Ammeter
electrons i A
flowing in a
conductor
Potential Amount of V volts Voltmeter
difference energy lost by v V
electrons in a
conductor
emf Amount of emf volts Voltmeter
“electromotiv energy given to V
e force” electrons by a
source of
electricity
Resistance Stopping R ohms Ohmmeter
potential of a Or voltmeter
current and ammeter
and calculate
value using
Ohm’s law
Power Rate of P watts Voltmeter,
producing or W ammeter,
using energy ohmmeter and
calculate

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Resistance:

Substances vary in how well they conduct electricity. If a substance allows a current to
pass through it easily, then it is called a good conductor of electricity. A good insulator
does not allow a current to flow through it easily. In between are substances, which
conduct electricity to different degrees.

Resistance is a measure of how well a substance opposed a flow of electrons. Poor

conductors of electricity are insulators and have a high resistance. A substance can have
a different resistance depending on the circumstances. For example, a thinner wire of
the same material has a higher resistance. Resistance also depends on how long the
resistor is. A long copper wire has a higher resistance than a short copper wire.

When a current flows through a resistor it generates heat as it tries to pass through. A
real life example of this is a fuse. A fuse is often a thin wire. If too much current is
flowing through the fuse it gets so hot it melts. Now there is no circuit so current does
not flow. A fuse is a safety device as it is better for the fuse to melt rather than the
wires in your house to get so hot they cause a fire.

Look at wire wound resistors; 1Ω, 2 Ω, 5 Ω, 10 Ω, 20 Ω and describe the difference

between the different sizes.

1. Connect up the following circuit:-

a) Describe the brightness of the globe

b) Replace the resistor with a 10 Ω , then a

20 Ω resistor and again describe the
brightness of the globe.

What does a resistor do?

22
The resistance of a component can be found from current and voltage:-

resistance
V
(ohms)

R
I

The unit of resistance is the ohm, and its abbreviation is the Greek letter Ω (omega). So,
if a potential difference of 10 V across a component causes a current of 2 A through it,
its resistance is 10 V / 2 A, or 5 Ω

If these are the voltage and current values for three components, find their resistances:-

a) 20 V, 2A b) 10 V, 0.5 A c)9 V, 0.1 A

Resistors in circuits

There are two main uses of resistors in electrical and electronic circuits:
1) They convert electrical energy into heat energy. The element in a kettle, or the bar
on an electric fire, is a resistor.

2) They ‘help’ other components in a circuit, by limiting the current. The other
components, such as diodes and transistors, can then do their job. The resistors in
an electronic circuit may become slightly warm, but they are not heaters.

Fig 3. Resistors to heat….and to control

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Design Experiment: Finding resistance by measuring voltage & current

Try to design an experiment to test the aim above. Use the headings

Aim:

Hypothesis: Your guess about how it can be done

Method: a description of how you intend to do it, including any equipment necessary and
any measurements that need to be taken. Include a risk assessment and precautions to
avoid any risks.
Results: design a table to record any measurements or other observations. (The results
will need to be graphed, so ask your maths or science teacher for help).
Discussion: any problems you had or any other difficulties encountered along with
suggestions about how to avoid problems or improve the experiment.
Conclusion: a short statement answering the aim (or possibly that this experiment was
not able to answer the question)

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25
Batteries
Batteries are a method of making electricity from chemicals. They are convenient and portable.

1. A “wet” cell”

The equipment below will enable you to construct a “wet cell” battery. The zinc and copper in the
diagram are called the electrodes and the dilute sulphuric acid is called the electrolyte.

Risk assessment:
Carry out a risk assessment for the chemicals used and method of use below.

Equipment needed:
fresh pieces of copper and zinc, dilute sulphuric acid.
a multimeter or ammeter, connecting wires, beaker.

Set Up:

Multimeter

Wires
zinc copper

acid

Observe carefully any changes you see when you set up the equipment as shown above and write
down the details.

Some background about the experiment:

Zinc atoms dissolve into the acid leaving electrons on the rest of the zinc. The electrons move
along the wire to the piece of copper, where they combine with the hydrogen ions in solution to
form hydrogen gas. Eventually all the zinc will dissolve in the acid or all the hydrogen ions will form
into hydrogen gas and the process will stop.

Your task is to extend the experiment to find out if other types of electrodes influence the
effectiveness of the battery.

Write a detailed report on your investigation including the equipment you used, how you performed
the experiment, the results and a conclusion.

26
2. A dry cell

If possible look at a C or D battery cut in half.

See if you can identify the main parts by drawing a labelled diagram.
The main parts are: manganese oxide is a black powder which absorbs the hydrogen gas produced;
ammonium chloride paste replaces the acid of the wet cell; the carbon rod replaces the copper; the
zinc casing replaces the piece of zinc.
Why do you think this is called a dry cell?

3. A car battery

Look at the car battery with a section cut away and identify the main parts. Identify any possible
risks when dealing with a car battery. List steps to ensure that it operates at maximum efficiency
ie topping up each cell with water regularly and any other maintenance.

4. Rechargeable and alkaline batteries

Find out: what makes a battery rechargeable

what the components are of an alkaline battery and how they are different from
ordinary batteries.

5.Disposal of batteries

Find out about the procedure for disposing of batteries responsibly. You may need to ask your
local council or check on the internet. Present a short (about half page) report to the class.

6.Dangers from electricity around the home

As a member of a group, you are to design a poster or pamphlet or website to educate young people
about the possible dangers around the home with electricity.

7. Solar Cells

De Jong et al Physics One Heinemann 1990, p 316

27
Generating Electricity

a) Direct (dc) Current – dynamo generator

Look at the demonstration dynamo generator and try to explain how it produces dc current

It has a coil of insulated wire that can rotate on an axle between the poles of a magnet. The ends
of the coil are connected to commutator segments. Brushes push on the segments to take the
current to the outside circuit. Current is generated when the wires of the coil move past the poles
of the magnet.

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De Jong et al Physics Two Heinemann 1991, p86

b) Alternating (ac) Current - alternator

a simple alternator is made of the same parts as a dynamo except that two circular “slip” rings are
used instead of two half-rings.

It generates a current that flows one way round the circuit, stops and then flows the other way
round. This is called alternating current (ac). It lights a lamp almost as well as direct current but
makes the pointer of an ammeter swing from + to – to + each turn of the loop.

De Jong et al Physics Two Heinemann 1991, p87

29
Power, Current and Resistance

Since the resistance of a component depends on the current through it and the voltage
across it, resistance can be used to calculate power.

Power = V x I V = I x R

So power = I x R x I, or:

Power = I 2 x R

So if a current of 0.1 A flows through a 220 Ω resistor, the power converted can be
found from ( 0.1 A) x 220 Ω , ie 2.2 W.
2

Question:

a) Find the power used when a current of 0.5 A flows through a 40 Ω resistor.

b) What is the resistance of one bar of an electric fire if it converts 1 kW of

electrical energy to heat energy when it is connected to a 240 V supply?

Fuses and Fuse Ratings

Some appliances have a holder for a small cartridge fuse, like those in figure 3 (below)

The current used by a main appliance can be found from current = power
rating/voltage. The Australian mains voltage supply is about 240 V.
30
For a 400 W hair dryer: current = 400 W / 240 V = 1.7 A

There is no 1.7 A mains fuse, so you choose the next value up from the range available.
Thus the hair dryer needs a 3 A fuse.

Question:

Find the required fuses for plugs fitted to:-

a) a 600 W drill
b) a 1.5 kW kettle

Fuses:

Set up circuit below:-

Turn up the power. What happens to the steel wool? What could be a use of this ‘fuse’?

Look at fuses in appliances, cars, houses (circuit breakers), describe why it is dangerous to
replace a fuse with a “too big” wire!

Earth leakage circuit breakers – what are they? How do they work?

Research
Compulsory questions

1. What does an electric shock do to the body?

2. Choose one type of electrical appliance. What are the basic design features that
the different makes of this appliance all have? What are features that some have
which make them better? Some appliances you could choose from include jugs,
toasters and fans. Use at least 2 sources during your research.

Choose one of these in consultation with your teacher.

3. Electrolytes are used in industry, at home and in the body. Report on the use of an
electrolyte.
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 4. How do Christmas tree Lights work?

5. The Internet site – How Stuff Works – has many descriptions of how some common
appliances work. Choose one you are interested in and see how it works.

Earthing and Safety Using the Internet.

• A good article on why appliances are often earthed and why it is important can be
found at Bill Beaty’s site at the Science Hobbyist – try to use your Internet skills to
find the site. The actual page is called: “Why three prongs”. Be very careful to
note that a plug in the USA is different to ones in Australia, but the same principles
apply. Construct a concept map on Earthing from your reading.

• Workcover - South Australia has some good articles on real cases where people have
been injured or died using electricity. Download one of these and prepare a short
presentation for the class. Include how OH&S practices could prevent this.

32
33
De Jong et al Physics One Heinemann 1990, pp. 328 - 329
34
Questions:-

1. Look at the table and find the total average energy use per day for a
house that has:-

3 bedrooms
2 bathrooms
electric hot water
Television, video
Vacuum cleaner
And power tools.

2. How could you reduce the amount of energy used in your house?

3. What is the purpose of the energy rating sticker?

De Jong et al Physics One Heinemann 1990,

p 329

35
Buying Electricity - Extension

Electricity boards use a larger unit to state the amount of electrical energy
you use. It is the kilowatt-hour (kW-hr) or just the Unit.

One kilowatt-hour is the amount of electrical energy used by a 1 kW device

during 1 hour.

The same energy equation can be used as previously, using different units
this time:

Energy used = power x time

Question:
(units) (kW) (hours)

Find the number of Units used by:-

a) a 2 kW heater, on for 3 hours

b) a 250 W television, on for 8 hours
c) a 3 kW water heater, on for 20 minutes.
Question:

If electrical energy is charged at 5c per Unit, find the cost of using each of
these for 8 hours:-

a) a 250 W television
b) a 100 W light bulb
c) a 2 kW electric fire

Self Check

By the end of this topic you should be able to:-

• Construct some simple electric circuits

• Recognise some potentially dangerous situations in using household
electricity
• Describe what fuses are and how they work
• Outline what earthing is and its importance

36
• Describe what a circuit, voltage, current and resistance is
• Classify electrical appliances according to the types of energy they
give out.
• Explain the basic principles of series and parallel connections.
• Classify common materials as conductors or insulators.

37
Self Test

Multiple choice questions. Choose the best answer.

1. Which of the following must be in an electric circuit::

a) a lamp or globe
b) a source of voltage
c) a switch
d) all of the above

2. Which of the following is most likely to be a good electrical insulator?

a) a knife
b) a copper wire
c) rubber gloves
d) aluminium foil

3. If a material has a high resistance then it:-

a) would be a good conductor
b) would be a poor insulator
c) would be good at stopping charges flowing through it
d) allow electrons to pass through it easily

4. Imagine that you have a strip of metal. The resistance of the strip
will depend on:-
a) what the metal is
b) how long the strip is
c) how thick the strip is
d) all of the above

5. If the voltage in a circuit is increased then the current will:-

a) increase
b) decrease
c) stay the same
d) might do any of the above

38
Some short answer questions

6. Why could using a thicker fuse wire in a circuit be a problem?

7. What type of energy is given out by:

a) an electric toothbrush?
b) a vacuum cleaner?

8. When the element in an electric jug breaks, it usually melts

somewhere along the wire. Some people have been known to try to
fix the element by removing the short end. Then they join the
remaining end to the element connection. Why is this bad practice?

9. Temperature is measured in degrees. What are (a) voltage and (b)

current measured in?

10. You have a set of party lights. When one globe blows, none of the
lights work. How are the light wired – in series or parallel? Explain.

Longer question:

11. Draw a concept map of electric circuits.

39