Magnetic field coil of wire problem

[leolaw]

This is the problem taken from Giancoli Chapter 20, number 80:
The magnetic field B at the center of a circular coil of wire carrying a current I is :
B = \frac{\mu_{0}NI}{2r}, where N is the number of loops in the coil and r is its radius. Suppose that an electromagnet uses a coil 1.2m in diameter made from square copper wire 1.6mm on a side. The power supply produces 120V at a maximum power output of 4.0kW.
(a) How many turns are need to run the power supply at maximum power?
(b) What is the magnetic field strength at the center of the coil?
(c) If you use a greater number of turns and this same power supply (so the voltage remains at 120V), will a greater magnetic field strngth result?

First of all, I cannot picture what a "square copper wire" is.

(a) P = VI, so 4* 10^3 = 120V (I), I = 33.3333
then I set the above forumla into:
\frac{B2r}{\mu_{0}I} = N
But then I am having problem finding the value of "B", which is the magnetic field of the coil. And this is also the problem for the next question

(c) I think the greater number of turns would result a greater magnetic field strength because when you make more loops for the coil, you are increasing the magnetic field. And when you add up all the magnetic field, it will ultimately greater then the original strength.

 

[thepatientmental]

However, I am not sure if this is correct because I am having trouble finding the value of "B" in the first place.

Let's break this problem down step by step. First, we are given the formula for the magnetic field B at the center of a circular coil of wire, which is B = \frac{\mu_{0}NI}{2r}. We are also given the diameter of the coil (1.2m) and the side length of the square copper wire (1.6mm), as well as the power supply specifications (120V and 4.0kW).

(a) To determine the number of turns needed to run the power supply at maximum power, we can use the power equation (P = VI) to find the current I. Plugging in the values, we get I = 33.3333 A. Now, we can use this value of current in the magnetic field formula, along with the given values for r and the number of loops N, to solve for N. This gives us N = \frac{B2r}{\mu_{0}I}. However, as you mentioned, we are missing the value of B.

(b) To find the magnetic field strength at the center of the coil, we need to use the given values to calculate B. We know that the magnetic field depends on the current and the number of loops, so we can rearrange the formula to solve for B: B = \frac{\mu_{0}NI}{2r}. Plugging in the values, we get B = 0.001 T or 1 mT (milliTesla).

(c) If we use a greater number of turns and keep the voltage at 120V, the magnetic field strength will increase. This is because, as you correctly stated, adding more loops to the coil will result in a stronger magnetic field. This is because each loop adds its own contribution to the overall magnetic field. Therefore, increasing the number of loops will result in a greater magnetic field strength.

In conclusion, to solve this problem, we need to use the given formula for the magnetic field, along with the values provided, to calculate the number of loops needed to run the power supply at maximum power and the magnetic field strength at the center of the coil. And yes, increasing the number of turns will result in a greater magnetic field strength.