VAN DE

GRAFF
GENERATOR

BS-PHYSICS (2020-2024)
Instructor: Mam Farah Hasan
Date: January 4, 2023
GROUP MEMBERS

1. Saeeda Bibi 2020-B.PHY-000

2. Amber Nisar 2020-B.PHY-000
3. Aqsa Binte Saqlain 2020-B.PHY-000
4. Ayesha Fatima Khan 2020-B.PHY-000
5. Khadija Tariq 2020-B.PHY-000
6. Laiba Iftikhar 2020-B.PHY-000
7. Marzia Jamil 2020-B.PHY-038
8. Wania Anosh 2020-B.PHY-000
CONTENT

Sr no. Topics Page

1. Content 3

2. Introduction 4

Literature Review
3. 4

4. Objectives 4

5. Materials 5

6. Construction 5

7. Working 6

8. Uses 6

9. Conclusion 7
INTRODUCTION
It was invented by American physicist Robert J. Van de Graaff in 1929. A Van de Graaff
generator is an electrostatic generator which uses a moving belt to accumulate electric charge
on a hollow metal globe on the top of an insulated column, creating very high electric
potentials. It produces very high voltage direct current (DC) electricity at low current levels. The
potential difference achieved by modern Van de Graaff generators can be as much as 5
megavolts. A tabletop version can produce on the order of 100 kV and can store enough energy
to produce visible electric sparks.
Small Van de Graaff machines are produced for entertainment, and for physics education to
teach electrostatics; larger ones are displayed in some science museums.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Van de Graaff probably started to develop his generator in 1992 along with Nicholas Burke at
Princeton University. Already in the October of same year, the first model was demonstrated.
The device used a regular tin can, a motor and a cheap silk ribbon. After receiving some
funding, Robert Van de Graaff was able to achieve 1.5 million volts with an improved version by
1931. In 1933 Van de Graaff build a 40 feet model at MIT’s Round Hill facility the use of which
was donated by Colonel Edward. In 1937 the Washington electric company built a 20m Van de
Graaff generator capable of generating 5Mev in forest Hills, Pennsylvania.
A later development was the pelletron, where the rubber belt is replaced by a chain of short
conductive rods connected by insulating rings and the air ionizing electrodes are replaced by a
grounded roller and inductive charging electrodes. The chain can be operated at much higher
velocity and current attainable are much higher than with the conventional Van de Graaff
generator

OBJECTIVES
The main objective of a Van de Graaff generator is to maximize the amount of charge
accumulation through the contact of dissimilar materials and CORONA DISCHARGE (an electrical
discharge caused by the ionization of a fluid such as air surrounding a conductor carrying a high
voltage)

MATERIALS

MATERIAL NAME MATERIAL TYPE

POWER SOURCE 220 AC
(3 Prong grounded cord)
INPUT POWER 30W
MOTOR 100RPM
STORAGE BALL DIAMETER 1F
DOSHARGE BALL DIAMETER 3 inches
WEIGHT 4 Kg

WORKING
The working of Van de Graff generator based on two phenomena:
Action of sharp points i-e corona discharge in which we took insulating belt closer to pointed
conductor (have high charge density) positive charge of conductor attract electrons from
insulating belt. These electrons neutralize the positive charge of pointed end and positive
charges come on insulating belt this phenomenon called corona discharge.
Charge given to a hollow conductor is transferred to the outer surface and uniformly
distributed over it.

CONSTRUCTION
It consists of a large hollow metallic sphere S of radius equal to few meters mounted on two
insulating supporting columns A1 and A2. A belt of insulating material is mounted on pulleys P1
and P2. The pulley P1 run by motor. Two sharp combs C1 and C2 are fixed near the pulleys P1
and P2 respectively. Comb C1 is called spray comb (it spray charges on belt) and comb C2 is
called collecting comb (collect charges from belt and transfer them on sphere S). The ions to be
accelerated and produced in a discharge tube. The ions source lies at the head of the tube in
metallic sphere S. Target T is at the other end of discharge tube D. The whole arrangement is
placed in a steel chamber pilled with gas at high pressure.
WORKING
Positive potential (10^4 V) is applied to the spray comb C1 with respect to earth. Because of the
sharp point discharging action, a positive charged electric wind is created, which sprays positive
charge on the belt. As the belt moves and reaches the comb C2 a negative charge induced on
the sharp ends of collecting comb C2 and an equal positive charge is induced on farther end of
C2. This positive charge immediately moves the outer surface of metallic sphere S. The
uncharged belt descends and reaches up to collect positive charge from C1 which in turn
collected by C2. Process is repeated again and again. Capacitance of spherical conductor;

C = 4πε0
V = q/c
V = q/4πε0
The potential of sphere S keeps increasing as charge rises. The breakdown of voltage of air is
3×10^6 v/m beyond which air around sphere ionized leakage of charge take place. By enclosing
the assembly in a chamber filled with gas at high pressure, this leakage is reduced. Projectiles
like protons, deuterons etc. are generated in discharge tube D and are accelerated in
downward direction along length of tube. High kinetic energy from the accelerated projectile’s
impact on the target caused an artificial nuclear reaction.

USES

1. It is a device used for building up extremely high potential differences of order of few million
volts these high potential differences are used to accelerate ions needed for experiments in
nuclear physics.
2. Projectiles like protons, deuterons, and other types of projectiles are accelerated using it to
hit targets with a lot of kinetic energy and induce artificial nuclear reaction.
3. In physics, it is used to study collision experiments.
4. It accelerate electrons to sterilize food and process material.
5. In medicine beam of positively charged particles are used to treat cancer.

CONCLUSION
The Van de Graff generator is one of the most significant scientific inventions. When we
surround the output terminal (sphere) of a generator with a grounded object, the voltage will
drop but the current won’t. Static electricity is created when two insulating bodies come into
contact and develop charges as a result of the friction takes place. By running a belt over a
terminal, the electric charge builds up on the surface of a hollow metal sphere since the
charges are static and can’t move on their own