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Chapter 2
Electricity
Key knowledge and skills

By the end of this chapter, you will have covered the following key knowledge and skills:

Apply the concepts of charge (Q), electric current (I ), potential difference

(V), energy (E) and power (P) in electric circuits.
Analyse electrical circuits using the relationships I  Q/t, V  E/Q,
P  E/t  VI, E  VI t.

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 37

Convert energy values to kilowatt-hour (kWh).

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VCE Units 1&2

Introduction
Charge
the amount of positive or negative
electricity

Quantity of charge
extent to which an object is
electrically charged; unit of
charge is the coulomb, C

Elementary charge
the first subatomic quantity to be
shown to come in discrete
packages: e  1.6  10 19 C
1 1 C  6.2  10 18 elementary
charges

Electricity is a very convenient form of energy. It is available from many

sources, such as batteries, alternators and solar panels. It can be generated
by power stations that use coal, water (hydro-electricity), natural gas,
wind or nuclear fuel. Electric power is transmitted over large distances for
domestic, commercial and industrial use.
Electric energy is easily transformed into other types of energy, such as
heat energy in toasters, ovens and heaters; sound energy in televisions,
radios and CD players; light energy in electric globes; and mechanical
energy in refrigerator motors, electric drills, hair dryers and electric shavers.
It can also be used in other appliances to create a magnetic effect to be
stored or used (in portable media players, magnetic RAM), or it can be used
to operate logic circuits in alarms, computers, robots and control devices.

Electrical quantities
Charge
Benjamin FRANKLIN (17061790)
Benjamin Franklin was the first American to be
universally accepted for his scientific achievements. He is also remembered as a statesman, a
printer and an inventor. Franklin was responsible
for the naming of the two types of electric charge
as positive and negative, and introduced the
terms plus and minus and also charge and
battery into scientific language.
Franklin was the 15th of 17 children and
was forced to leave school at the age of 10 to
help his father in the family candle and soap
shop. Two years later he became an apprentice
printer. He became a skilled printer and also
wrote several newspaper articles. At the age of
17, he ran away to Philadelphia. For the next
7 years, he worked for various printers in
Philadelphia and then in London.
In 1737, he became postmaster of
Philadelphia, and this was the first of many
public offices that he held during his lifetime. He
is remembered as a statesman and a diplomat
for his work.
Franklin was one of the first people to
become interested in the study of electricity.
His most famous experiment in 1752 was to
prove that lightning is a form of electricity. This
led him to invent the lightning rod, which is
still used today to save buildings from lightning
strikes.
Other of Franklins inventions include
arranging flues in stoves to improve heating in
rooms, bifocal glasses and improving acid soil
by using lime.

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 38

You are probably familiar with some common examples of the effects of
electrostatic charge: a plastic comb run through your hair, and a plastic
ruler or pen rubbed on woollen material attract small pieces of tissue
paper. If you take off a polyester or nylon shirt or blouse in the dark, you
sometimes hear a crackling noise and observe flashes of light as the static
electricity discharges.
The ancient Greeks were the first to realise that some substances could
be charged. Amber, the hardened sap from softwood trees, would attract
light objects when it was rubbed vigorously with a cloth.
There are two types of charge: positive and negative. Like charges
always repel each other and unlike charges attract each other.

Charge

Positive ()

Negative ()

Positive ()

Repel

Attract

Negative ()

Attract

Repel

Q or q is used to represent a quantity of charge. Charge is measured

in coulomb, C. The charge on an electron is known as the elementary
charge, e.
1 elementary charge  1.6  1019 C  charge on an electron
 charge on a proton
1 1 C  6.2  10 elementary charges
18

Lightning rods
Lightning discharges are dramatic illustrations of electrostatic effects. The
enormous electric discharge between thunderclouds and the surface of
the Earth (or between neighbouring clouds) can produce lightning flashes
that are spectacular, but are often frightening and dangerous (Figures 2.1
and 2.2).

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Unit 1
Chapter 2 \\ Electricity

39

charge on thundercloud

+
+

+ stream
of ions

+ ++
+
+

lightning
conductor

+ + + +
induced
charge

+ + +

electrons
into ground
metal plate
in ground

Figure 2.2 A charged cloud drives electrons down the

lightning rod on a building, which provides a controlled
path to Earth for the discharge of the cloud.

Figure 2.1 Lightning discharges onto the Central Plaza, Hong Kong.

Electrostatic precipitators
An effective means of reducing smoke and ash particles escaping from
coal-fired power stations is electrostatic precipitators in the smoke stack.
Positively charged smoke particles are repelled from a positive wire mesh
in the centre of the chimney and attracted to metal plates on the sides,
where they stick (Figure 2.4).

Electrostatic precipitators
devices that take charged ash
particles out of smoke before
discharge to the atmosphere

Charging a material by friction

When a strip of cellulose acetate is rubbed with a cotton cloth, electrons
are transferred from the acetate to the cotton. The cellulose acetate
becomes positively charged and the cotton becomes negatively charged.
The charge is not destroyed, simply transferred.
An object becomes negatively charged when it gains an excess of
electrons, or positively charged when it loses electrons and so has
unbalanced positive charge. Only electrons can move in this process of
charging a material (Figure 2.3).
Before
rubbing:

polythene strip

wool

positively charged
fine wire grid

+
positively
charged
particles
are
deposited
on the
metal
plates

+
+
+
+

metal
plates

neutral or uncharged materials

positively charged
wool

After
rubbing:

+++ +
+ ++
+ +
+ +
electrons transferred by rubbing together
excess of electrons
negative charge

deficiency of electrons
positive charge

Figure 2.3 Electrons are transferred to and from materials when they are rubbed together.

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 39

smoke and dust

particles rising with earth
the waste gases
connection
to metal
plates

Figure 2.4 In an electrostatic precipitator, the positively

charged wire mesh in the centre induces negative
charge on the metal plates on the sides, causing
deposition of ash.

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VCE Units 1&2

The charged materials do not remain charged for very long. They
discharge by transferring electrons to or from the surroundings.

+
+ +
+ +

+
+
attraction

Charging a material by induction

+
neutral
(equal number of
positive and
negative charges)

Figure 2.5 Charges on a neutral object may move

around the surface in the presence of a nearby charged
object. The two objects will then be attracted.

Conductors, insulators
and semiconductors

Electrostatic induction
local movement of charge on an
object as a result of a nearby
charged object

Conductors
materials that allow charge to flow
in them

Insulators
materials that do not allow
charges to flow freely in them

Semiconductors
partial conductors that can
enhance or inhibit charge flow

A neutral object can be attracted by a charged object due to electrostatic

induction (see Figure 2.5). This occurs because electrons are free to move
around the surface of a conductor. If, for example, a highly positively
charged object is placed near a neutral conductor, there is a localised
rearrangement of the positions of the charges. Negative charges are drawn
to the side nearest the positive object. The neutral object is then attracted
towards the positive object. If they touch, the net charge on both objects
becomes positive and they will then fly apart.

Conductors are materials that contain charged particles that are not very
tightly bound to their nuclei, so charge is able to move in them relatively
easily. Insulators are materials that do not contain free charged particles,
so they will not allow charge to flow through them. Metals are good
conductors because they have many outer-shell electrons that are not too
tightly bound to the atom or to the structure in which they reside. Plastics
are insulators because the electrons are much more tightly bound into the
compound (Table 2.1).
A very important group of materials are the semiconductors, which,
given the appropriate conditions, can either enhance or inhibit the flow
of electrons.
Table 2.1 Examples of conductors, insulators and semiconductors

Good conductors

Copper

Aluminium

Graphite

Poor conductors

Water

Human body

Sugar

Insulators

Glass

Rubber

Dry air

Semiconductors

Silicon

Germanium

Current
Current
Q
rate of charge flow: I  __
t

Current is a flow of positive charges. This was decided well before the
electron was discovered. Physicists have kept the convention because
there are significant implications for many of the laws and rules of
electricity, magnetism and electromagnetism if they were now to change
the direction of current to be the flow of electrons.
Consider the following cases, in which charges are moving past a line
XY, as shown in Figures 2.6, 2.7 and 2.8. In all three cases, the right side
becomes more positive by three units.

X
conductor

X
conductor

conductor

+
Y

Figure 2.6 Three positive charges moving to the

right makes a current of 3 units.

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 40

Figure 2.7 Two positive charges moving to the

right and one negative charge leaving the right,
making the right more positive, makes a current
of 3 units.

Figure 2.8 Three negative charges moving to the left,

that is leaving the right, makes a current of 3 units.

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Unit 1
Chapter 2 \\ Electricity

The quantity of current (I ) is defined as the rate of charge flow. If Q

charge flows in t seconds, the current I is given by the equation:
Q
I  __

t
The unit of current is 1 coulomb per second  1 C s1  1 ampere  1 A.
The amount of charge that passes a point in a given time is:

41

Direct current (DC)

current that is always positive

Alternating current (AC)

current that changes from positive
to negative and back again

Q  It
There are two types of current, namely direct current (DC) and
alternating current (AC). In DC, the net charge flows in one direction; in
AC, the charge flow alternates.
DC is the method used in torches, portable radios, lights in cars, and in
toys. The most common source of DC is a battery. DC is generally safer
than AC because the rapid switching of AC current has serious effects on
nerve responses.
AC is used in many applications such as car alternators, motors and
clocks because it is simpler to produce and transmit, and, during
transmission, power losses in the wires can be reduced. The standard
frequency used throughout Australia is 50 Hz. This is accurately controlled, normally within a variation of 1 Hz.

Energy
In an electrical system, energy is transferred from place to place. The
source of energy, for example, a power station, a battery or an alternator,
provides energy to each charge. Each charge is then ready to do work.
Energy potentially available to do work is called potential energy. So,
each charge has potential energy each charge is ready to do work.
When the charges are permitted to release energy, they do work, for
example, by heating a toaster, lighting a lamp or driving a motor. The
potential energy is converted to energy in the form of heat, light, movement or any number of possible forms in which energy transfers are
experienced.

Potential difference
The energy (E) given to each charge (Q), the potential energy per charge,
is called potential difference and measured in volt (V ):
E
V  __
Q
The unit of potential difference is:
1 volt  1 V  1 joule / coulomb  1 J C 1
If the potential energy of each charge is given up in some way, such as in
a circuit, the amount of energy provided, or used, is:
E  QV

Charles COULOMB (17361806)

The unit of electric charge in the SI system is named
after Coulomb in recognition of his work on electric
charge, especially the force by one charge on
another charge the electrostatic force.
Charles Coulomb was born in France and,
after obtaining an engineering degree, spent
9 years in the West Indies, where he first became
interested in scientific experimentation.
His work on mechanics gained him
election to the French Academy of Sciences.
This enabled him to devote most of his time
to the study of mechanics, including friction,
structure of materials and soil mechanics.
Coulomb invented a torsion balance,
which he used to discover the inverse-square
law of force that exists between charged
bodies. He measured the rotational deflection
of charged spheres when spheres of opposite
charge were brought close to them. This result
was known to Cavendish, but Cavendishs
work was only published by Maxwell 50 years
after his death. So, Coulomb gets the credit!
Coulomb also made important discoveries
about the distribution of charges on conductors,
and developed a theory of magnetism.

Potential energy
energy associated with the position
of an object; energy ready to do
work; stored energy; the energy
given to each single charge that
can be delivered up in a circuit

Potential difference (V)

E,
potential energy per charge: V  __
Q
sometimes referred to as voltage

Electromotive force ()
At one time it was thought that the charges were subjected to some
electrical force to make them move an electromotive force (emf ). We
still use this term, but now understand it in terms of energy available to do
work. A battery has an emf, which is then reduced by the internal resistance of the battery. Thus, the potential difference across the terminals of
the battery is the emf less the potential difference across the internal

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 41

Electromotive force (emf)

energy per charge provided by a
source of potential difference
(voltage source)

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VCE Units 1&2

Energy is energy!
The name we give to different forms of energy
hides an important point. All energy is the
same. It came from the origin of the universe.
In the beginning, there was energy, and the
energy went: BOOM! After that the energy
condensed into photons, electrons, protons
and all the matter of the universe. When we
speak of light energy we speak of energy that
we can measure with a light-measuring
instrument such as our eyes. Heat energy is
measured by a thermometer, and sound
energy by our ears or a sound level meter.
The names we give to different forms of
energy depend upon the way we measure the
energy, not because the energy is any
different. Energy can be experienced in
different ways. Fundamentally, all energy is
the same.

resistance. The internal resistance is treated as a series resistance that in

most, but not all, cases is very small (negligible) compared to the resistance
in the rest of the circuit.
Vterminals   Vinternal to battery

Potential and potential difference

The energy is given to each charge by doing work on the charge, as it is
brought from infinity to a point. The energy per charge at a point is
called the potential of that point. The potential at a point is the voltage
at that point. Generally, we are concerned with energy transfers leading
to energy transformations, so the important feature is the difference in
potential between two points. Charge will transfer energy from a point
at higher potential to a point at lower potential. No transfer of energy
occurs between points at the same potential. The potential difference is
just the voltage drop between two points. It is a measure of the energy
per charge being used, converted or transferred between the two
points.
Work done by moving a unit positive charge from one point to another
is defined as the potential difference or voltage difference between the
points. If the work done by moving a quantity of charge, Q, is W, then the
potential difference V, in volt, is given by the equation:
W
V  ___
Q

Potential
energy per charge at a point

Power

Power (P)
E
rate of energy transfer: P  __
t

A 100 W globe delivers 100 J of energy in 1 second. A 50 W globe delivers

the same amount of energy (100 J), but in 2 seconds. The 100 W globe
is therefore more powerful because it delivers more energy per second
than the 50 W globe. From our perspective, we see better with a 100 W
globe than a 50 W globe, so the rate at which the energy is delivered, the
power, is our judge of the relevant quantity.
Power (P ) is defined as the rate of energy transfer, either delivery or
dissipation. It is the energy transfer per unit of time. Therefore:
E
P  __
t
When V is measured in volt (V), I is measured in ampere (A) and t is
measured in second (s), the energy is measured in joule (J). The power is
then measured in watt (W).
1 watt  1 W  1 joule per second  1 J s1
Power delivery can be deduced from voltage and current values:
E
P  __
t
VQ
Q
1 P  ___  V __
t
t
1 P  VI

 

The amount of energy transferred can be deduced from:

E
P  __
t
1 E  Pt
1 E  VIt

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 42

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Unit 1
Chapter 2 \\ Electricity

43

Converting energy values

to kilowatt-hours
For domestic energy usage, the joule is too small. A larger unit, the
kilowatt-hour (kWh), is used:
One kilowatt-hour (1 kWh) is the energy used by a 1 kWh appliance in
1 hour:
E (kWh)  P (kW)  t (h)  103 W  (60 min  60 s)
Thus,
1 kilowatt-hour  1 kWh  3.6  106 J

\\ WORKED EXAMPLE

A current of 2.0 A flowing in a heater for an hour converts 1.7 MJ of electric

energy into heat energy.

Question 1
How much charge is transferred into the heater?

Answer
Q , Q  It
I  __
t
1 Q  2.0  (60  60)
1 Q  7.2  10 3 C

Question 2
What is the potential difference across the heater?

Answer
E
V  __
Q
1.7  10 6
1 V  ________
7.2  10 3
1 V  240 V

Question 3
Find the power rating of the heater in kW.

Answer
P  VI
1 P  240  2.0  480 W
1 P  0.48 kW

Question 4
How much energy is used if the heater runs for 2 hours (in kWh)?

Answer
E  Pt
1 E  0.48  2.0  0.96 kWh

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 43

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VCE Units 1&2

Summary of electricity
Charge

Positive and negative

Elementary charge (e) is a discrete unit of charge: e  1.6  1019 C

Charge

Positive ()

Negative ()

Positive ()

Repel

Attract

Negative ()

Attract

Repel

Unit of charge is coulomb: 1 C  6.2  1018 elementary charges.

Electrostatic charging

All materials are neutral, but electrons can be taken from them to make them overall
positive or added to them to become overall negative.
Electrostatic induction: charges can be redistributed to make areas locally charged by the
presence of a nearby net charged body.
Conductors have charge carriers that are free to move.
Insulators have very tightly bound charge carriers that are not free to move.
Semiconductors have opportunities for charge carriers to move and can be used to amplify
or inhibit charge carrier movement.

Current

Number of charges passing a point in 1 second:

Q
I  __
t
Unit of current is coulomb per second: 1 C s1  1 ampere  1 A.
The amount of charge that passes a point in a given time is:
Q  It

Energy

Potential energy is energy ready to do work.

Potential difference (voltage): potential energy per charge (potential):
E
V  __
Q

Unit of potential difference is volt: 1 V  1 joule per coulomb  1 J C1.

If the potential energy of each charge is given up in some way, such as in a circuit, the
amount of energy provided, or used, is:
E  QV

Electromotive force, emf, is the potential difference provided by a battery, not taking into
account any energy losses internal to the battery.

Power

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 44

Power is energy delivered or used every second.

E 1 E  Pt
P  __
t
P  VI 1 E  VIt

Unit of power is watt: 1 W  1 joule per second  1 J s1.

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Unit 1
Chapter 2 \\ Electricity

45

Kilowatt-hour is a unit of energy.

1 kilowatt-hour (1 kWh) is the energy used by a 1 kWh appliance in 1 hour:
E (kWh)  P (kW)  t (h)  103 W  (60 min  60 s)
1 kilowatt-hour  1 kWh  3.6  106 J

Review questions
The elementary charge e  1.6  1019 C

Test Yourself
Word Check

Question 1
If a current of 0.50 A flows for 10 minutes in an electrical conductor, calculate the
number of coulombs of charge that pass a given point.

Theory Summary

Question 2

Podcast Revision

If 1.2  104 C of charge flows in a conductor in 1.0 hour, what is the electric current
(assuming that this is a steady current)?
Question 3
If 5.0  1018 electrons per second pass through a current-measuring device, what is
the current in amperes?
Question 4
How long will it take for a total charge of 720 C to pass through a conductor if a
steady current of 0.60 A is flowing?
Question 5
A student claims that the charge on an ion in a solution is 2.4  1019 C. Why must
the student be incorrect?
Question 6
A steady current of 0.50 A flows in a wire. How many electrons flow past any point in
the wire in 1.0 s?
Question 7
Calculate the emf of a dry cell that supplies 4.5 J of energy to every 3.0 C of charge
that passes through the cell.
Question 8
Calculate the emf of a battery that supplies 960 J of energy to every 80.0 C of
charge that passes through the battery.
Question 9
Calculate the emf of a battery that supplies 1.92  1018 J of energy to every
electron that passes through the battery.
Question 10
How much energy does a 12.0 V car battery supply to every coulomb of charge?
Question 11
How much energy does a 12.0 V car battery supply to every electron?
Question 12
A 6.0 V torch battery operates for 0.50 hour to light a globe that draws a current of
2.0 A.
a

What is the quantity of electric charge that flows through the battery in half an hour?

How much energy is supplied to the charge that flows through the battery?

What is the power rating of the globe?

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 45

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VCE Units 1&2

Question 13
A current of 2.0 A flows in a dry cell when a light globe is connected across the
terminals of the cell. The potential drop across the terminals is 6.0 V.
a

What is the quantity of electrical charge that flows in the globe each second?

How much energy is given to each coulomb of charge that passes through the
battery?

How long does it take the battery to supply 480 J of energy?

How many coulombs of charge will pass through the battery in this time?

Question 14
In 30 s a total of 100 C of charge passes through a battery and 600 J of energy is
supplied to the electric charge.
a

What is the emf of the battery?

What is the current flowing in the battery?

Question 15
What is the emf of a battery that supplies 12 J of energy to each coulomb of charge?
Question 16
A battery of emf 18.0 V provides a current of 2.5 A for 3.0 minutes.
a

How many coulombs of charge pass through the battery?

How many elementary charges pass through the battery in the 3.0 minutes?

How much energy is supplied to each:

i

coulomb of charge?

ii

electron?

What was the power expended by the battery?

How much work was done by the battery?

Question 17
A 100 W light globe is left on for 1.0 hour.
How much energy is used by the globe? Give your answer in joule and kilowatt-hour.
Question 18
A 1.5 kW toaster cooks two pieces of toast in 80 s. If all the energy is used in
cooking the toast, how many kilowatt-hours of energy are used per piece of toast?

02_VCE_PHYSICS_SBCD_1&2.indd 46

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