Question 19:
Explain the following.
(a) Why is the tungsten used almost exclusively for filament of electric lamps?
(b) Why are the conductors of electric heating devices, such as bread-toasters and
electric irons, made of an alloy rather than a pure metal?
(c) Why is the series arrangement not used for domestic circuits?
(d) How does the resistance of a wire vary with its area of cross-section?
(e) Why are copper and aluminium wires usually employed for electricity
transmission?
Answer:
(a) The melting point and resistivity of tungsten are very high. It does not burn
readily at a high temperature. The electric lamps glow at very high temperatures.
Hence, tungsten is mainly used as heating element of electric bulbs.
(b) The conductors of electric heating devices such as bread toasters and electric
irons are made of alloy because resistivity of an alloy is more than that of metals.
It produces large amount of heat.
(c) There is voltage division in series circuits. Each component of a series circuit
receives a small voltage for a large supply voltage. As a result, the amount of
current decreases and the device becomes hot. Hence, series arrangement is not
used in domestic circuits.
(d) Resistance (R) of a wire is inversely proportional to its area of cross-section
(A), i.e.,
(e) Copper and aluminium wires have low resistivity. They are good conductors of
electricity. Hence, they are usually employed for electricity transmission.
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