Investigating Portable Nichrome Heaters

[saleen_s7]

ive been given a problem in skul which goes lyk dis:
"Many cars have an electrical ciggerate lighter which it is possible to plug other appliances into such as heaters, phones, lights, etc.
An electrical firm that wants to produce small portable heaters which can be plugged into these ciggerate lighters has come to you, as a consultant, to investigate the possibility of this.
They also want to produce the heater out of nichrome wire and they want it to have different power settings ( preferably 1,2,3 where 2 is as twice as good as 1 and 3 is three times as good as 1)
They want you to come up with some factors that might affect the heating affect of the wire, you are to choose one which you can study in the laboratory.
Once you have come up with a list of factors that might affect the heating effect of the wire, you are to choose one which you can study in the laboratory.
Your report to the firm will follow the laboratary write up format, which is attached to this sheet. If you are after the higher grades you should also mention how you would go about creating the different power settings. You should also be able to calculate the expected temperature rise and compare these to the experiment values.
You will have available to you all the electrical equipment we have already used during the course which includes, ammeter, voltmeters, wires, variables resistors, and the lock master power supplies. You should limit yourself to a maximum current of 0.5 A. You will also have available to you other general equipments, that is normally in a science department.
To model the heater you should set up ur apparatus as below. You will have to sellotape the wire to the tape."

Now i dun exactly haf the diagram buh in the book ders a tube sellotaped to the tube which is labelled as boiling tube and the wire is labbled as nichrome wire SWG 36 and ders water in the tube...
Help me out ppl.. really need it.. thx

 

[Ouabache]

Welcome to the PF forums! If you have been reading this forum,
you already know there are lots of interesting topics here and knowledgeable people who can help you, provided you show us you are thinking about your questions and attempting a solution.

On your question, it would help us if you posted a drawing of your setup.
Here's an example you can use as a guide for setting up your initial posts.
Have you researched how you may use nichrome wire for this application?
(hint: do a search here on PF for threads about nichrome)

 

[m2003]

I would first like to commend the electrical firm for considering the use of nichrome wire for their portable heaters. Nichrome wire is a good choice for heating elements due to its high electrical resistance and ability to withstand high temperatures.

In order to investigate the factors that may affect the heating effect of the wire, I would suggest conducting experiments to study the following variables:

1. Current: The amount of current passing through the wire will directly affect the heating effect. By varying the current using the available equipment, we can observe the changes in temperature of the wire.

2. Length of wire: The longer the length of the wire, the more resistance it will have and therefore, the more heat it will produce. We can study this by using different lengths of wire and measuring the temperature changes.

3. Diameter of wire: The diameter of the wire also affects the resistance and heating effect. A thicker wire will have less resistance and produce less heat compared to a thinner wire. We can investigate this by using wires of different diameters and measuring the temperature changes.

4. Type of wire: Although the firm has specified the use of nichrome wire, we can also study the effects of using different types of wire, such as copper or aluminum. Each type of wire will have different electrical properties and therefore, produce different levels of heat.

5. Voltage: The voltage supplied to the wire will also affect its heating effect. By varying the voltage, we can observe the changes in temperature of the wire.

Out of these variables, I would suggest studying the effect of current on the heating effect of the wire. This is because it is the easiest variable to control using the available equipment and it has a direct relationship with the heating effect.

To create the different power settings, we can use a variable resistor to control the current passing through the wire. By adjusting the resistance, we can achieve the desired power settings of 1, 2, and 3.

In order to calculate the expected temperature rise, we can use the formula for Joule heating, which states that the heat produced is directly proportional to the current and the resistance of the wire. By knowing the current and resistance, we can calculate the expected temperature rise and compare it to our experimental values.

In conclusion, by studying the effects of current on the heating effect of nichrome wire, we can provide valuable insights to the electrical firm and help them in the development of their portable heaters.