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INTRODUCTION
The electrostatic force is the force that exists between electrically charged particles or objects at rest.Electrostatic charges occur when for instance a rod of plastic is rubbed with fur or a rod of glass rubbed with silk causing it attract small pieces of paper . The charge on plastic rubbed with fur is defined as negative, and the charge on glass rubbed with silk is defined as positive.
Such electrically charged objects have several important characteristics:
- Like charges repel one another; that is, positive repels positive and negative repels negative.
- Unlike charges attract each another; that is, positive attracts negative.
- Charge is conserved. A neutral object has no net charge. If the plastic rod and fur are initially neutral, when the rod becomes charged by the fur, a negative charge is transferred from the fur to the rod. The net negative charge on the rod is equal to the net positive charge on the fur.
There are many examples of electrostatic phenomena:
- The attraction of the plastic wrap to your hand after you remove it from a package.
- The attraction of paper to a charged scale.
- The apparently spontaneous explosion of grain silos.
- The damage of electronic components during manufacturing.
- Photocopier and laser printer operation.
Electrostatic phenomena arise from the forces that electric charges exert on each other .
Electrostatic forces occur due to the charges that takes place within atoms of an element or compound .The atom is made up of a central part called the nucleus, containing positively charged ions called protons and outwardly surrounded by negatively charged electrons.
The nucleus also contain the particles called neutrons which are not charged.
When an atom is not charged the number of protons equals the number of electrons.
When a material is rubbed with another i.e. acetate with silk, electrons are transferred from one body to another.
The body accepting or receiving electrons becomes negatively charged while the one donating or losing electrons becomes positively charged. Protons and neutrons in the nucleus do not move.