When an electric current is passed through a conductor, after few time it becomes hot due to transformation of few electrical energy into the heat energy. This effect of current is called the heating effect of electric current. It is also known as joule heating, ohmic heating or resistive heating.
Electric currents generate heat as it passes through the resistive elements of a circuit due to fast collision of the electrons. The higher the resistance of a conductor, the more heat will be generated as this effect is directly proportional to the current passes through it. The heating effect is used in daily life in many electrical appliances which are listed below.
- Electric Bulb
- Electric Kettles
- Electric Irons
- Electric Heaters
- Electric Toasters
- Electric Rice Cookers
- Electric Induction stove
- Electric Fuse and so on.
A high resistive element i.e tungsten, nichrome wire etc are used as heating element in these appliances. Besides these element conductor wire like copper wire or aluminium wire also generate small amount of heat every second when electric current passes through these wires. The heat generated is given by the following equation.
H = I2Rt
where,
- H is the amount of heat generated
- I is the amount of current flowing through the wire
- R is the resistance of the wire
- t is the time period
Conclusion
Hope, you have clearly understand about the heating effect of electric current and its applications. Make sure to leave your opinion and suggestion about this post in the comment section below.