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    Home » What is voltage?

    What is voltage?

    March 18, 2022 By Emma Vanstone Leave a Comment

    Voltage is the force that pushes current around a circuit. Imagine a battery being like a pump, pushing the current around the circuit. A more complicated way of defining it is that voltage is the difference in electrical energy between two points on a circuit.

    You can buy batteries with different voltages or use multiple batteries to increase the voltage in a circuit. The bigger the voltage the more current flows around a circuit.

    How is voltage measured?

    Voltage is measured in volts.

    The voltage of a standard AA battery is 1.5V.

    The voltage of household wiring varies around the world but is 230V in the UK and 120V in the US.

    When we made a potato battery we used a voltmeter to check the voltage.

    2 potatoes and a voltmeter showing the current passing through the potato battery circuit

    What is current?

    Current is the flow of charge ( negative electrons ) around a complete circuit. If the circuit breaks the current stops flowing. Current is measured in Amperes!

    You can learn more about electricity and circuits with one of my easy electricity projects.

    Potato Battery
    Lemon Battery
    Graphite Circuits

    What is voltage? Learn about voltage and current with these simple electricity demonstrations

    Last Updated on March 18, 2022 by Emma Vanstone

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    Safety Notice

    Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

    These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

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