so my science project is: what materials conduct static electricity best?and i made an electroscope by taping 2 strips of aluminum foil onto a straw and putting that straw onto this cup.anyways, i tried rubbing silk, cotton, hair, wool, and newspaper onto my plastic ruler and bringing it close to the aluminum foilhowever.for most of the objects, one of the aluminum strips seems to attract to the ruler but the other one repels it.wtf?what is happening, and why?should a silk, cotton, wool, newspaper, or hair charged ruler attract or repel the aluminum strips?
Some materials hold their electrons very tightlyElectrons do not move through them very wellThese things are called insulatorsPlastic, cloth, glass and dry air are good insulatorsOther materials have some loosely held electrons, which move through them very easilyThese are called conductorsMost metals are good conductors How can we move electrons from one place to another? One very common way is to rub two objects togetherIf they are made of different materials, and are both insulators, electrons may be transferred (or moved) from one to the otherThe more rubbing, the more electrons move, and the larger the static charge that builds up(Scientists believe that it is not the rubbing or friction that causes electrons to moveIt is simply the contact between two different materialsRubbing just increases the contact area between them.) Static electricity is the imbalance of positive and negative charges OPPOSITES ATTRACT Now, positive and negative charges behave in interesting waysDid you ever hear the saying that opposites attract? Well, it's trueTwo things with opposite, or different charges (a positive and a negative) will attract, or pull towards each otherThings with the same charge (two positives or two negatives) will repel, or push away from each other.
