Q3W1:1

Methods of Electrostatic
Charging

General Physics 1/2

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Spark! Have you ever
got electrostatically
shocked when you
touch a cold metal bar
in a mall?
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Or witnessed a girl
holding a van de Graaf
generator while the
strands of her hair
repel one another?
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Have you ever wondered what causes lightning?

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The electrical shock, hair strands repelling one
another in a van de Graaff generator, and the
production of lightning results from the
movement of electrical charges. This lesson
discusses the nature of electric charge and
how they are transferred from one material to
another.

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How are electrical charges
transferred from one material
to another?

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 Learning Competencies
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Describe using a diagram charging by rubbing

and charging by induction (STEM_GP12EMIIIa-1).

● Explain the role of electron transfer in

electrostatic charging by rubbing
(STEM_GP12EMIIIa-2).

● Describe experiments to show electrostatic

charging by induction (STEM_GP12EMIIIa-3).
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 Electrostatics

Static electricity (or electricity at rest) is

produced when there is an imbalanced
of electrical charges. “Electricity”
comes from
the Greek
word elektron
which means
amber.

Amber is able to produce static electricity when

rubbed with a cloth. 8
 Electric Charge

Benjamin Franklin
carried out famous experiments
involving flying kites during
thunderstorms.

● Classified charges as either

positive or negative.

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 Electric Charge

JJ Thomson
discovered negatively charged
particles known as electrons

Ernest Rutherford
discovered positively charged
particles known as protons

Charges are measured in coulombs

JJ Thomson
(C). 10
11
Interaction of Charges

Unlike charges attract.

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Interaction of Charges

Like charges repel.

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Why can there still be an
attractive force between a
neutral object and a charged
object?

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 Interaction of Charges

Consider a neutral sphere containing the same positive

and negative charges.

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 Interaction of Charges

Charge separation occurs when an external charged

sphere is placed near the neutral sphere.

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 Methods of Charging

Structure of the Atom

Atoms are made up of three
subatomic particles namely:
● electrons,
● protons, and
● neutrons.

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18
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 Ionization

● The gain or loss of electrons

● If one or more electrons are
removed from an atom, what
remains is called a positive
ion
● A negative ion is an atom that
has gained one or more
electrons

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21
 Conservation of Charge

Law of Conservation of Charge

How many positive and negative charges are there?

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 Conservation of Charge

Law of Conservation of Charge

It states that the algebraic sum of all the electric charges in

any closed system is constant.

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 Electric Charge

● Charge is quantized
● Every observable amount of
electric charge is always an
integer multiple of this basic
The magnitude of charge unit
of the electron or proton ● The charge on any
is a natural unit of charge macroscopic body is always
zero or an integer multiple
(negative or positive) of the
electron charge.
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 Methods of Charging

Net Charge
An object’s net charge is the sum of the number of
electrons and protons.

negatively positively
neutral
charged charged 25
Phet simulation

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Friction
● Electrons are
transferred
when objects
are rubbed
against one
another.

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What type of charge is
transferred from one material
to another during charging by
friction?

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Between two objects which are
being rubbed, how can you
determine which will become
negatively charged and which
will become positively charged?

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Methods of Charging

Suppose you rub a silk cloth against a glass rod. 30

 Methods of Charging

Which became positively charged? Negatively charged? 31

 Methods of Charging

● The chemical property of an

atom to attract electrons itself
is called electron affinity.

● The triboelectric series ranks

materials based on their
tendency to acquire charge.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction
● Also known as
charging by
contact.
● A charged object is
touched to a
conductor.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction

Assume that the

neutral sphere is a
good conductor.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction

Charge separation
occurs when a
negatively charged rod
is placed near the
sphere.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction

Upon contact, some

electrons move from
the rod to the sphere.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction

Upon separation, both

the rod and the sphere
obtains a negative
charge.

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by
Conduction

Can you explain

charging by conduction
when a positively
charged rod is used
instead?

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by Induction

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by Induction

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by Induction

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by Induction

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 Methods of Charging

Charging by Induction

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Demonstration

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Demonstration

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Application

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Electroscope

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Challenge Yourself

Rubber rods charged by rubbing with

cat fur repel each other. Glass rods
charged by rubbing with silk repel
each other. A rubber rod and a glass
rod charged respectively as stated
above attract each other. Explain
how this happens.
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Photo Credit

● Slide 3: Van de Graaff Generator - Science City - Calcutta 1997 016 by Biswarup Ganguly is
licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

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Bibliography
Freedman, Roger A. and Young, Hugh D. Sears and Zemansky's University Physics with Modern
Physics (13th ed). USA: Pearson Education, 2012.

Homer, David and Bowen-Jones, Michael. Physics Oxford IB Diploma Programme. UK: Oxford
University Press, 2014.

Hewitt, Paul G. Conceptual Physics (11th ed). New York: Pearson Education, 2010.

Sang, David, Graham, Jones, et.al. Cambridge International AS and A Level Physics Coursebook.
UK: University Printing House, 2014.

Young, Hugh D., Roger A. Freedman, and A. Lewis Ford. Sears and Zemansky’s University Physics with
Modern Physics (13th ed). USA: Pearson Education, 2012.

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