Electric charges

Electric charge
 Electric charge is the property of matter that causes matter to experience a
force when paced in an electromagnetic field.
 It is fundamental property of certain of elementary particles of which all
mater is composed.
 There are two types of charges:
a. Positive charge
b. Negative charge
 A. positive charge: when an atom loses electrons, it becomes positively
charged. Protons in the nucleus of an atom have positive charges.
 B. negative charge: when an atom gains electrons, it becomes negatively
charged. The charge of an electron is 1.6020 x 10-19.
 NB: An object with an absence of net charge is referred to as Neutral.
 The SI derived unit of electric charge is the coulomb which is denoted by c,
named after French physicist Charles- Augustin de coulomb.
 A coulomb can be defined as “ the quantity of charge transferred in one
second.” The basic formula of electric charge is given by:
Q = IT where Q =charge(C)
I= current(A)
t= time (S)
 Eg:- calculate the charge flowing through a circuit in 10 seconds if the
current 2 amperes.
Solution :- Q = It
= 2A x 10Sec = 20 coulombs
 The amount of charge obtained by a body can also be obtained by:
Q = ne
Example:- calculate the number of electrons constituting 16 coulombs of
charge.
Solution:- q = ne
16 = ne , 16 = 1.6 x 10-19n
n = 1.6 x 10-19/ 16
= 1020 electrons
 Note that a charge of one electron is not one coulomb, instead one
coulomb of charge contains 6.24 x 1018.
 The laws of conservation of charge states that “ The total electric charge of
a system remains constant despite changes inside the system.”
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 Electrostatics is the study of charges at rest.

properties of electric charge :

 Like charges repel each other, and opposite charges attract each other.
 Electric charge can be transferred from one object to another through
process such as conduction, induction and friction which makes it
movable.
 Electric charge is conserved, which means that it cannot be created nor
destroyed, only transferred from one object to another.
 Charge is scalar quantity.
Methods of charging
 The process of supplying the electric charge to an object or losing the
electric charge from an object is called charging.
 An uncharged object can be charged in three different ways as follows:
 Charging by friction
 Charging by conduction
 Charging by induction

Charging by friction
 When two objects are rubbed against each other, charge transfer takes
pace. One of the objects loses electrons. The object that loses electrons
becomes positively charged and the object that gains electrons becomes
negatively charged. Both the objects get charged due to friction and this
method of charging is commonly known as charging by friction.
 Example :- when a plastic rod is rubbed with a piece of cloth electrons are
transferred from the rod to the cloth.
Charging by conduction
 Is the technique of charging an uncharged material by bringing it into touch
with some other charged material.
 Example:- when a positively charged almunium plate is touched to a neutral
metal sphere. The neutral metal sphere becomes charged as the result of
being contacted by the charged almunium plate.
Charging by induction
 It is a charging method that charges an object without actually touching the
object to any other charged object.
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 Example:- charging smartphones

Conclusion
 In conclusion Electric charge is a
fundamental property of matter that plays
a significant role in our daily lives.
Understanding the concept of electric
charge is essential to gain a deeper
understanding of various fields, including
physics, chemistry and engineering.

References
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Electric charges

 Extreme
 Byjus.com
 Wikipidea