Central Philippine University

ILOILO CITY, PHILIPPINES

MATHEMATICS and PHYSICS DEPARTMENT
Experiment No.____1_____________

ERWIN M. YSUG
Name_______________________________________________Course BSED- SCIENCE
and Year_________________ 3

Static Electricity

Part 1
I. Objectives

To study the behavior of electrified objects.

II. Materials

*Electrostatic Material Set *Paper Strips

Rabbit Skin Cloth *Snow Drops

Wool *Ebonite Rod (2)

Silk *Iron Stand with Bar

Glass Rod *String

Glass Tube

PVC Tube

Plastic Strips (Big and Small)

Rod Holder

III. Procedures

Common Setup Steps for Each Material (PVC Tube, Glass Rod, Ebonite Rod):

1. Prepare the following materials: PVC tube, glass rod, two ebonite rods, paper strips,
snowdrops, two plastic strips of different sizes (big and small), a glass tube, an iron stand with
a bar, a string, and two rod holders.
2. Makes the paper strips smaller by cutting them.
3. Attach the plastic strips to the string, and hang the string from the iron stand’s bar.
4. Place the glass tube and the ebonite rod in each of the rod holders.
5. Set up and arrange all the items on a flat surface.
Procedure for PVC Tube:

1. Individually rub the PVC tube with rabbit hair, wool, and silk before each setup.
2. Position the PVC tube near or above the objects (paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips, glass
tube, and ebonite rod) on the flat surface.
3. Observe and record interactions with paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips, glass tube, and
ebonite rod after each rubbing.

Procedure for Glass Rod:

1. Individually rub the glass rod with rabbit hair, wool, and silk before each setup.
2. Place the glass rod near or above the objects (paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips, glass
tube, and ebonite rod) on the flat surface.
3. Observe and record interactions with paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips, glass tube, and
ebonite rod after each rubbing.

Procedure for Ebonite Rod:

1. Individually rub the ebonite rod with rabbit hair, wool, and silk before each setup.
2. Position the ebonite rod near or above the objects (paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips,
glass tube, and ebonite rod) on the flat surface.
3. Observe and record interactions with paper strips, snowdrops, plastic strips, glass tube, and
ebonite rod after each rubbing.

Note for each procedure: Ensure that rabbit hair, wool, and silk are individually used for rubbing
the specified material before each setup, and keep snowdrops, paper strips, plastic strips, glass
tube, and ebonite rod arranged on the flat surface for consistent comparisons in observations.
Repeat the process for each material setup.
V. Data and Computation

Paper Snow Plastic Strips Glass Ebonite

Strips Drops Tube Rod

Big Small

Materials

PVC Tube Rabbit Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract

Hair

Wool Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract

Silk Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract

Glass Rod Rabbit Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract

Hair

Wool Attract Attract Attract Repel Repel Repel

Silk Attract Attract Attract Attract Repel Repel

Ebonite Rabbit Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract Attract

Rod Hair

Wool Repel Repel Attract Repel Repel Repel

Silk Repel Repel Attract Repel Repel Repel

 Part 2
I. Discussion

This lab investigates how electric charges are generated by friction and how they
influence the interaction between two objects that have either positive, negative, or no charge.
Conductors are materials that have electrons that are not tightly bound, such as metals. These
electrons can move freely inside the conductor or transfer easily to another conductor that
touches it. This experiment demonstrated three methods to give electric charges to a material:
rubbing it with another material to create friction, touching it with a charged object to allow
conduction, and bringing it close to a charged object without touching it to induce polarization.

Conduction is a process where electric charges are transferred between objects that
touch each other. Induction is a process where electric charges are redistributed within objects
that are close to each other but do not touch. In conduction, electrons move from the object
that has more negative charge to the object that has less negative charge, until both objects
have the same charge. In induction, electrons move away from the side of the object that faces
the charged object, creating opposite charges on the two ends of the object. This experiment
also studied electronegativity, which is a measure of how strongly an object attracts or repels
electrons. Objects that have higher electronegativity will tend to lose electrons more easily than
objects that have lower electronegativity.

II. Observation

In this experiment, I rubbed the PVC tube, the glass rod, and the ebonite rod with
different materials and observed how they interacted with other objects. I found that rubbing
the materials created electric charges by friction, which could be transferred by contact
between insulators. The PVC tube and the ebonite rod had opposite types of charge, one
positive and one negative, and they attracted the paper strips and the snowdrops, which were
neutral or weakly charged. The plastic strips, however, were polarized by the charged rods, and
they were repelled by the PVC tube and the ebonite rod, but attracted by the glass rod, which
had a weaker positive charge. The glass rod and the ebonite rod also attracted each other,
because they had opposite charges. The glass tube and the ebonite rod, and the glass tube and
the PVC tube, had no effect on each other, because they were both neutral or weakly charged.
The type of charge on each material depended on their electronegativity, which is a measure of
how strongly they attract or repel electrons. The electrostatic series is a list of materials ordered
by how easily they give or take electrons. The materials that give electrons the most are at the
top and the materials that take electrons the most are at the bottom. For example, rabbit hair
gives electrons more than PVC, so it becomes positive when it rubs with the PVC tube and the
PVC tube becomes negative. Similarly, silk gives electrons more than glass, so it becomes
positive when it rubs with the glass rod and the glass rod becomes negative. However, wool
takes electrons more than PVC, so it becomes negative when it rubs with the PVC tube and the
PVC tube becomes positive. Likewise, wool takes electrons more than ebonite, so it becomes
negative when it rubs with the ebonite rod and the ebonite rod becomes positive.

III. Analysis

These observations can be explained by the theory of electrostatics, which states that
there are two kinds of charges, positive and negative, that can be transferred by friction,
conduction, or induction, and that like charges repel and unlike charges attract. The experiment
also demonstrates the concept of electronegativity, which is a measure of how strongly an
object attracts or repels electrons. The more electronegative an object is, the more likely it is to
lose electrons and become positively charged. The less electronegative an object is, the more
likely it is to gain electrons and become negatively charged. The electrostatic series ranks
different materials by their electronegativity, with the most electronegative at the top and the
least at the bottom. For example, rabbit hair is more electronegative than PVC, so it loses
electrons to the PVC tube and becomes positively charged, while the PVC tube gains electrons
and becomes negatively charged. Similarly, silk is more electronegative than glass, so it loses
electrons to the glass rod and becomes positively charged, while the glass rod gains electrons
and becomes negatively charged. However, wool is less electronegative than PVC, so it gains
electrons from the PVC tube and becomes negatively charged, while the PVC tube loses
electrons and becomes positively charged. Likewise, wool is less electronegative than ebonite,
so it gains electrons from the ebonite rod and becomes negatively charged, while the ebonite
rod loses electrons and becomes positively charged.

The interactions between the charged materials and the other objects can be
understood by the principle that like charges repel and unlike charges attract. The PVC tube
and the ebonite rod had opposite charges, so they attracted the paper strips and the
snowdrops, which are neutral or have very weak charges. The plastic strips, however, became
polarized by the charged rods, meaning that the side closer to the rod had the opposite charge
and the side farther away had the same charge. This created a net attraction between the
plastic strips and the rods, but the attraction was stronger for the opposite charges than for the
same charges. Therefore, the plastic strips were repelled by the PVC tube and the ebonite rod,
but attracted by the glass rod, which had a weaker charge. The glass rod and the ebonite rod
also had opposite charges, so they attracted each other. The glass tube and the PVC tube had
the same charge, so they repelled each other, but the repulsion was very weak because of the
low charge.

IV. Conclusion

In conclusion, this experiment illustrates the basic principles of electrostatics, such as

charge transfer, charge interaction, electronegativity, polarization, induction, and conduction. It
also shows the difference between conductors and insulators in terms of their ability to carry or
retain electric charges. The experiment can be improved by using more materials with different
electronegativities, such as rubber, cotton, or leather, to see how they affect the charge of the
rods and the other objects. The experiment can also be extended by using a device such as an
electroscope or a charge sensor to measure the amount of charge on the rods and the other
objects, rather than relying on qualitative observations. This would allow for a more
quantitative analysis of the electrostatic phenomena.