Category Archives: electrostatics

Electrostatic Motors are Making a Comeback

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An exploded view of an electrostatic motor from manufacturer C-Motive. There is a silvery cylinder on the left, two half silver and half golden disks on either side and two thinner gold disks in the center. A square mountin plate is on the right hand side next to one of the silver/gold disks.

Electrostatic motors are now common in MEMS applications, but researchers at the University of Wisconsin and spinoff C-Motive Technologies have brought macroscale electrostatic motors back. [via MSN/WSJ] While the first …read more Continue reading Electrostatic Motors are Making a Comeback→

Static Electricity And The Machines That Make It

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Static electricity often just seems like an everyday annoyance when a wool sweater crackles as you pull it off, or when a doorknob delivers an unexpected zap. Regardless, the phenomenon …read more Continue reading Static Electricity And The Machines That Make It→

Electrostatic Generator Project Starts With Molten Sulfur

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A modern recreation of von Guericke's electrostatic generator

Although the basic concept of electrostatic attraction has been known since ancient times, it was only in the 17th century that scientists began to systematically investigate electrostatics. One of the …read more Continue reading Electrostatic Generator Project Starts With Molten Sulfur→