Electrostatics: Charging Objects by Friction, Conduction, and

Induction

Course name and number: PHY- 212

Student name: Jia Qi Wen

Lab number:

Date:02-04-2021

TYPE ALL Of YOUR ANSWERS IN A DIFFERENT COLOR (not black!)

Overview

Static electricity is the result of an imbalance of charge in materials. Since all

materials are made up of atoms, it is important to understand how the
positive and negative charges in the atom produce this imbalance of charge
in objects.

Typically, the number of electrons equals the number of protons. The outer
electrons are located farthest from nucleus and are held more loosely than
the rest. On contact between two materials, electrons may migrate from one
material to another. This migration will create an imbalance of charges. The
object whose atoms lost electrons will be left with a positive charge on it and
the object that received or “captured” the electrons will have a negative
charge. This imbalance of charges is what creates static electricity.

Insulators and Conductors

Materials made of atoms that hold on to their electrons very tightly are
called insulators. Materials made of atoms that have a weak attraction to
their electrons are called conductors.

The Triboelectric Series

Triboelectricity means electric charge generated by friction. It comes from

the Greek word “tribos”, which means rubbing. Historically, the charge on
glass positive and the charge on silk negative after they rubbed against one
another. When an insulator like glass is rod rubbed against an insulator like

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silk, a charge transfer occurs between the two materials. Silk attracts the
loose electrons from the surface of glass and becomes negatively charged.
Because charge is conserved, the glass rod is left positively charged.
Transfer of electrons is responsible for charging; the protons in atoms
remain where they are. Materials possess various tendencies to acquire or
lose electrons; the ordering of these tendencies is referred to as the
triboelectric series. The list below orders several common materials by their
electrical nature.

Asbestos

Rabbit Fur Tendency to gain

Glass, Mica POSITIVE

Human Hair charge

Nylon, Wool

Lead

Silk

Aluminum

Paper

Cotton

Steel

Wood

Amber

Hard Rubber

Mylar

Nickel, Copper

Silver, Brass

Gold, Platinum

Polyester, Celluloid

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Saran Wrap

Polyurethane

Polyethylene

Polypropylene Tendency to gain

Vinyl, Silicon NEGATIVE

Teflon charge

Silicon Rubber

Different Ways to Obtain Charge

There are primarily three different methods in how material gets charged.
We call them rubbing or friction, conduction or touching, and induction.

Activity 1: Electrostatic soap bubble experiment

Objectives

This is a quick fun science experiment, which is demonstrated electrostatic staff in

the soap bubbles.

Materials:

Smooth surface

Liquid soap

Drinking straws, cups

Plastic bottle

Electrostatic kit

Procedure:

Mix liquid soap and water together. Use drinking straws and make a bubble on a
surface. Then we need an electrically charged object. Use the triboelectric effect to
charge the variety things: balloon and hair, plastic bottle, rods and different fabrics.
Bring the charged object close to the bubble.

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1. Describe your observations:

The radius of soap bubble increases because of outward force acting on the bubble
due to charging. I used a balloon that I charged with my hair by rubbing on it which is
called triboelectricity.

2. Explain your observations:

As I moved the charged objects around the bubble, the bubble also moved and
as I got really close to the bubble it popped.

Next blow a small bubble inside of the big one.

1. Describe your observations:

I saw that when I moved the charged object around the bigger bubble, the
smaller one did not move it stayed.

2. Explain your observations:

When you charge an object depending on the material we used, the area
charged has either more positive electrons than negative electrons. The
plastic bottle has more negative electrons than positive electrons for the
bottle to say its negatively charged. The soap bubble overall is electrically
neutral it has an equal number of positive protons and negative electrons.

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 3.

4. Make research about Faraday cage, Faraday ice pail effect.

Faraday cages shield their contents from static electric fields. An electric field is a force field
surrounding a charged particle, such as an electron or proton. As a Faraday cage distributes
that charge or radiation around the cage's exterior, it cancels out electric charges or radiation
within the cage's interior. In short, a Faraday cage is a hollow conductor, in which the charge
remains on the external surface of the cage.

Activity 2: Sticky Tape

Take a piece of tape and place most of it onto a desk or binder (keep one end of
the surface so it can peel off easily). Quickly peel the tape off.

a. When the tape is brought near your finger, what happens? Why do you
think this happens?

Since like charges repel, the pieces of tape repel each other. When the tape sandwich is pulled apart,
one-piece rips negative charges from the other. One piece of tape therefore has extra negative charges.

b. When the tape is brought near another piece of tape, also peeled from
a surface what happens? Why do you think this interaction occurs?

Since like charges repel, the pieces of tape repel each other. When the tape sandwich is pulled apart,
one-piece rips negative charges from the other. One piece of tape therefore has extra negative charges.

Activity 3: Charging Objects by Friction

Objectives

Students will be able to describe and draw models for common static electricity
concepts. (transfer of charge, induction, attraction, repulsion, and grounding)

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Open Balloons and Static Electricity, then explore to develop your own
ideas about electrical charge.

Open John Travoltage , then explore to develop your own ideas about
electrical charge.

Test your understanding: Without using the simulations, predict the

answers to these questions, then use the simulation to check your ideas.
Question 1:
When the balloon is rubbed on the sweater, what might happen?

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When you rub a balloon on a sweater, for example, some electrons come off and end up on the balloon.
Positive and negative attract so if you bring the balloon near the fibers, they move toward the balloon.
The positively charged fibers are now attracted to the negatively charged balloon.

What do you predict for the answer?

Describe an experiment and include images from the simulation that
supports your answer.

When we rub a balloon against your sweater, the balloon will steal electrons from the sweater, which
leaves the sweater positively charged and the balloon negatively charged. The balloon will most likely be
attracted back to the sweater because opposite charges attract.

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Question 2:
What do you think will happen when the balloon is moved closer to the wall?

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What do you predict for the answer?
Describe an experiment and include images from the simulation that
supports your answer.

When the balloon is moved closer to the wall, some positive charges in the
wall will move towards the balloon because of attraction of the negative
charges of the balloon, the positive charges move towards the balloon.
And some negative charges in the wall will move away from the balloon
because of the negative charges of the balloon repeal and the negative
charges will be repelled away from the balloon.

Question 3:
What do you think the balloons will do?

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 What do you predict for the answer?
Describe an experiment and include images from the simulation that
supports your answer.

In contrast to the attractive force between two objects with opposite charges, two objects that are of

like charge will repel each other. ... Similarly, a negatively charged object will exert a repulsive force
upon a second negatively charged object. Objects with like charge repel each other.

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Question 4:
What might happen to the charge on the man when he touches the
doorknob?

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 What do you predict for the answer?
Describe an experiment and include images from the simulation that
supports your answer.

Most electrons will go into the knob and down to the earth. Here the excess negative charge on
his body gets transferred to the knob when he touches it.

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