Ahsan T.
English III
Wimshurst Machine
In the modern world, almost everyone is familiar with electricity as an accessible, essential form of energy. In electricity's earlier days, scientists used the buildup and release of static electricity. It is the same reason why our clothes stick in the dryer. Have you ever wondered what the Wimshurst machine is? The Wimshurst machine is an electrostatic generator giving high voltage of energy, which was developed during the early 1800s. The Wimshurst machine was last great electromagnetic generator ever invented. The Wimshurst machine generator beats the Van de Graaff generator by a long run.
Back in the day, electricity could be produced by conventional methods, electrostatic devices were the primary means of generating high voltages. Inventors in both the United States and Europe developed their own versions of the generator, however British scientist James Wimshurst built one of the more successful models in the early 1880s. Using induction, a redistribution of the electrical charge in an object. These machines change mechanical energy; Which is included in the Wimshurst machine. The Wimshurst generator has a distinctive appearance. The structure is composed of a pair of discs fixed on a vertical axis, a couple of brushes made out of metal, and a spark gap between a set of iron globes. When put in operation, each disc is spun in opposite directions, revolving past the fixed brushes, creating charges that are increased and collected by metallic fixtures close to each of the discs. The collective charges gain strength, creating sparks that shoot between the globes.
A Van de Graaff generator is an electrostatic generator which uses a moving belt to accumulate very high amounts of electrical potential on a hollow metal globe on the top of the stand. It was invented by American physicist Robert J. Van de Graaff in 1929. The potential difference achieved in modern Van de Graaff generators can reach 5 mega volts. A tabletop version can produce on the order of 100,000 volts and can store enough energy to produce a visible spark. This isn’t as powerful as the James Wimshurst generator. Van de Graaff’s generator operates by transferring electric charge from a moving belt to a terminal. First invented in 1929, the Van de Graaff generator became a source of high voltage for accelerating subatomic particles to high speeds, making it a useful tool for fundamental physics research.
Van de Graaff is a tabletop generator unlike the Wimshurst machine. The coolest thing about them is that you can feel them working. As you begin to crank a Wimshurst machine, you can hear it crackle and hiss with energy, you can smell the sharp tang of ozone, and you can feel the hair on your arms stand up as the Leiden jars begin to charge. Wimshurst machines were used by scientists and experimenters investigating electrostatics but also, and more significantly, by the medical profession. Wimshurst machines with multiple sets of disks were employed to excite X-ray tubes used in early medical imaging. Smaller Wimshurst machines were also employed to apply electric shocks directly to the patient. While it is unlikely that these shock treatments actually helped the patients of the day, once you get a chance to play with your own Wimshurst machine you will surely understand how a patient might believe that the machine must be doing something!
Wimshurst machines also had a place in Victorian entertainment. After a fine meal, guests would often enjoy to the parlor for games, discussion, and demonstrations of a scientific sort. One can imagine that the visceral aspect of the Wimshurst machine with its spinning glass disks, crackle of electrical discharge, and the loud report of the six-inch sparks generated must have made it particularly popular. And for the most adventurous, in the right sort of company, there was a demonstration known as the electric kiss.
The Wimshurst electrostatic generator was the last great electrostatic machine ever made. The advent of more modern systems may have rendered it outmoded in terms of practical usefulness, but it holds an important place in science today. From elementary school science classes to university physics courses, the Wimshurst is often the electrostatic device of choice for demonstrations of static electricity. This totally rules over the Van de Graaff model’s tabletop generator.
Work Cited
De Queiroz, Antonio Carlos M. "The Van De Graaff Generator." The Van De Graaff Generator. N.p., 27 Mar. 2007. Web. 14 Dec. 2013.
"Related Electricity & Magnetism Pages." National High Magnetic Field Laboratory: Museum of Electricity and Magnetism. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2013.
Silver, Jerry. "The Wimshurst Machine: Separating and Storing Charges." Education.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2013.
Zavisa, John. "How Van De Graaff Generators Work." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2013.