Static Bands

Concept: Static Electricity
Static electricity is the buildup of an electrical charge on the surface of an object. The electricity is stationary and does not flow as a current. It is the result of an imbalance between negative and positive charges on an object.

Read Aloud: Science Experiments with Electricity by Sally Nankivell-Aston

Ingredients:

      ·         Plastic Produce Bag
      ·         Cotton Towel
      ·         Balloon

 Demonstration:

      ·         Use a pair of scissors to cut off a strip from the end of a plastic produce bag.

      ·         Rub a cotton towl over the surface of an inflated balloon for about 45 seconds.

      ·         Flatten the plastic band on a hard surface and then gently rub the towel on the plastic band for 45 seconds as well.

      ·         Hold the plastic band above the balloon and release it. The plastic band should levitate above the balloon.

Experiment:

·         Are there other objects besides the balloon that you can use to levitate the plastic band?

·         Are there other objects besides the plastic band that you can levitate with the balloon?

Observations:
Items with different charges (positive and negative) will attract, while items with similar charges (positive and positive) will repel one another. Rubbing the pen against the balloon and the plastic band produces friction and transfers a negative charge to both objects. The band floats above the balloon because the two negative charges will push away from each other.