Does
Electricity Pass Through
Air, Water, Metal or Plastic?
1st
Place School Level - 3rd Grade February 2000
 By Sarah Schoelles |
The purpose of this experiment is to see if an electric current can pass through metal, air, water or plastic. I became interested in this when I watched a lightening storm and wondered what would happen if the lightening hit the antenna on the roof. If a current can pass through materials, people could get hurt.
I placed a battery and a flashlight bulb at opposite ends of a 6"x12" board. I soldered wire to the ends of the battery and bulb and hot glued different materials in the middle of the board.
I used four different materials: water in a plastic cup, a metal paper clip, a plastic drinking straw, and air space between the wires. I touched the positive wires from the battery and bulb to the materials in the middle and noted whether the bulb lit up.
My hypothesis was that the metal, air and water would let the current pass through to the bulb. The plastic would not let the current pass. My hypothesis should be partially rejected because only the metal allowed the current to pass through and light up the bulb.
Electricity can hurt people, and things that use electricity will not work if the electricity does not stay in the wires. If electricity can "jump" across air or through water, metal or plastic, lights will still light up, but people will get shocked. If if cannot "jump", then lights will work, but people will be safe. If we know which material electricity can flow through, we can make things work and make them safe for people at the same time. I became interested in this by watching a lightening storm and wondering what would happen if the lightening hit the antenna on the roof.
I think that metal, water and air will let the lightbulb light up, but the lightbulb will be weaker across air. Electricity will not pass through plastic. I think this will happen because electricity flows through wires which are made of metal, through water when you drop an appliance in the water, and through air like lightening. Wires are covered with plastic, so electricity will not flow through plastic.
The things that stayed the same in this experiment were:
· The battery and lightbulb
· The board they were attached to
The things that changed were:
· Four different materials were used
The things that were measured were:
· If the current could flow through the materials
|
1.5 volt D Battery |
1. Paint the wood board.
2. Hot glue the battery to the top of the board on the right side.
3. Hot glue the flashlight bulb to the top of the board on the left side.
4. Straighten out the paper clip so it looks like a flag pole with a base
at the bottom. Hot glue the paper clip to the top of the board in the middle.
5. Hot glue the small cup to the top of the board in the middle above the
paper clip.
6. Hot glue the straw to the top of the board in the middle below the paper
clip.
7. Strip the ends off of the two pieces of wire.
8. Solder one piece of wire to the bottom of the battery and to the metal
part of the flashlight bulb.
9. Cut the second piece of wire in half. Solder one half to the top of the
battery. Solder the other half to the metal part of the flashlight bulb.
10. Touch the two half-pieces together to see if the lightbulb lights up.
11. Fill the small cup with water. Place the two half-pieces into the water,
but do not let the ends of the wires touch each other. See if the lightbulb
lights up and write down the results for the Water Test. Do this 3 times.
12. Touch the two half-pieces to the straw, but do not let the ends of the
wires touch each other. See if the lightbulb lights up and write down the
results for the Plastic Test. Do this 3 times.
13. Touch the two half-pieces to the paperclip, but do not let the ends of
the wires touch each other. See if the lightbulb lights up and write down
the results for the Metal Test. Do this 3 times.
14. Hold the two half-pieces as close together without letting them touch
each other. See if the lightbulb lights up and write down the results for
the Air Test. Do this 3 times.
Current Can Pass Through ... Results
| Type of Material |
1st
|
2nd
|
3rd
|
|
Water
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
|
Plastic
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
|
Metal
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Air
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
I used a NyQuil cup to hold the water. I also added salt to the water to see if that made a difference. It did not. The current did not flow through any of the materials except the metal.
I think I would have a different result if I used a bigger battery or electricity from the wires coming into the house.
My hypothesis should be partially rejected. The current did flow through the metal, but it did not flow through water or air like I thought it would. It did not flow through plastic, which I predicted.
ELECTRICITY - Electricity is energy that makes things move or work. Atoms contain electrons, protons and neutrons. When electrons move from one atom to the next, they create the energy called electricity.
CURRENT - Electricity flows through material as current. This is like water flowing down a river, except it is a current of electrons. Some materials let electricity flow better than others.