Creating static charge with a voltage source

[pinsky]

I'm learning about static electricity. All the examples always bring up the experiments with rubbing a balloon with your hair and combinations like that.

I've found a page that lists what kind of charges certain materials tend to have.

http://www.school-for-champions.com/science/static_materials.htm

So now I'm wondering, is it possible to attach a negative electrode of a 12V source to a piece of glass and expect that it will get positively charged?

Could i also connect myself to the negative electrode and expect that I will also be positively charged?

Both myself and the glass will be standing on a insulator.

I'm going to try that, and post the results.

 

[pinsky]

Well, that didn't work very well :)

So I tried something else. I took a piece of aluminum foil and connected it to the + side, and than after about 30 seconds, i disconnected it. I thought that now when i bring the positive electrode to the aluminum it would move a bit, but it didn't.

My assumption is that either the voltage or the capacitance of the foil is to small, to accumulate enough charge for the force to be noticeable.

So how do I increase the capacitance of the foil? Bi making it's surface larger?

I think the formula for the capacity of a capacitor can't apply here.

$$C = \epsilon_0 \epsilon_r \frac {S}{d}$$

What is the dielectric here? The piece of plastic he foil was placed on, or the air around it :) ?

And what would d represent?

 

[Dale]

A typical static electric charge can be 10s or 100s of kV. A 12 V static charge is negligible.

 

[pinsky]

Ok, so that's a fail than.

What about the capacity?

If I had a full metal cube which i attach to a positive electrode, how can I calculate the amount of excessive charge? Considering that the cube is placed on an isolated material and the electrode is removed.

 

[sardar]

I appreciate your curiosity and experimentation with static electricity. The examples of rubbing balloons and hair are common because they demonstrate the transfer of electrons between two materials, resulting in one becoming positively charged and the other negatively charged. However, as you have discovered, there are certain materials that naturally have a tendency to hold a positive or negative charge.

In regards to your question about using a voltage source to create static charge, it is possible to do so. By attaching a negative electrode to a piece of glass and a positive electrode to yourself, both standing on an insulator, you can create a static charge between the two objects. This is because the voltage source is providing a flow of electrons, which can transfer between the glass and yourself, resulting in the glass becoming positively charged and yourself becoming negatively charged.

However, it is important to note that this method of creating static charge may not result in as strong of a charge as other methods, such as rubbing two materials together. This is because the voltage source may not provide enough energy to create a significant buildup of charge. Additionally, the type of insulator you are standing on can also impact the effectiveness of this method.

I encourage you to continue your experimentation and share your results. As scientists, we learn through trial and error and it is through these experiments that we can gain a better understanding of static electricity and its properties. Keep asking questions and exploring new ideas, and you may discover something new about this fascinating phenomenon.