Conservation of Charge

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Conservation of charge is the principle that the sum of the electrical charge of a closed system is constant.

The Main Idea

The idea that the net charge of a closed system is constant implies that: if a charge appears in a previously neutral system, an equal and opposite charge appears in another part of the system. Individual charges, however, can be created or destroyed.

A Mathematical Model

Given the intial and final times (Ti and Tf), the charge of a system can be described using the equation Q(Tf) = Q(Ti) + Qin - Qout

A Computational Model

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Examples

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Simple

A system contains two spheres of the same mass. Sphere 1 has a charge of -1C and Sphere 2 has a charge of + 5C. The two spheres are brought together, touch, and are separated again. What is the net charge on each of the two spheres?

Solution:

Since the two spheres have the same mass, the charge will distribute itself evenly between the two spheres. Add the two charges, then divide by 2.

(-1+5)/2 = 3 C

Connectedness

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History

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See also

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Further reading

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External links

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References

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