Electricity

Electricity is generally also known as "Electrical Energy". Electricity, like any other form energy abide by the law of conservation - Energy cannot be destroyed or created. It can only be converted from one form to another. It is as well a property of electrons and protons that cause attractive and repulsive forces between them. Electricity can be mainly classified under Static and Current Electricity.

Static Electricity is discovered as early as 600BC, in the ancient Greek. It is found that rubbing fur on various substances would cause a particular attraction. between the two. The Greeks noticed that certain substance could attract light objects such as hair and dust. In addition, when they rubbed for long enough, they could even get a "spark". The "Discovery" of electrical charge.

Measurement of Electrical Charge

The S. I unit for charges is Coulomb (C). The electrical equation is as follows... 

Charge = Current X Time

Q = I X t

where Q is the charges measured in Coulomb (C); I is the current measured in Ampere (A); t is the time measured in second (s). 

Coulomb (C) is the quantity of electrical charges that flow through a given section in a circuit when a unit of steady current flows per unit time

Find out more about Static Electricity 

When there is a movement of electrical charges, there is a current flow - Current Electricity. The convention direction of current flow is from positive terminal to negative terminal. Upon the discovery of electron flow, we understand that it is the electrons that flow not the protons. Electron flow from the negative terminal to the positive terminal. 

Measurement of Current

Electrical current, I is a measure of the rate of flow of electrical charge, Q through a given cross-section of a conductor.

Current = Charge / Time

I = Q / t

where Q is the charges measured in Coulomb (C); I is the current measured in Ampere (A); t is the time measured in second (s). 

Find out more about Current Electricity 

Copyright 2008