Mony Grade 9A Science

September 17, 2014 1

Resistance of Wire Investigation Task

Background Information
In electricity, resistance is a measure of how much material is trying to
stop the flow of electricity, otherwise known as current. As the electrons move
through the wire, they often collide with the atoms, which all have restricted
movement. These collisions cause the atoms to vibrate, increasing the chances of
more collisions. As a matter of fact, there are five factors that affect resistance:

Length
Temperature
Cross Section Area (Diameter)
Material
Magnetism

All of the factors listed above affect resistance in some way by either
increasing or decreasing the resistance of the wire. In fact, resistance is
measured in Ohms using the symbol and it affects the flow of electricity. The
reason behind this is because resistance makes it a lot harder for the electrons,
(which is what electricity is made out of) to travel through the object.

Research Question/Aim
How does changing the temperature of the wire affect the resistance of the wire?

Hypothesis
I think that the higher the temperature of the wire, the greater resistance
it will have.

This is because the increase in temperature will cause the atoms in the
wire to vibrate a lot more resulting in more collisions with the electrons.
Therefore, I think that my graph will have a positive gradient slope and will
increase because as the temperature gets higher, so does the resistance.
However, I think that it will not be linear because there isnt a specific pattern
that this factor follows since there is no specific rule. Nevertheless, the slope will
increase along with the temperature (x-axis) and the resistance (y-axis).
Ultimately, the reason why I think that the higher the temperature of the wire,
the greater resistance it will have is because the temperature will cause the
atoms to vibrate more. This will make it difficult for the electrons to move
smoothly through the wire since there is a high possibility that they will collide
with the atoms.

Variables
Variable Factor Description
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September 17, 2014 2

Materials Needed for the Experiment
Independent Temperature of the wire To do this, I will change the
temperature of the wire ten
times during my experiment by
leaving the wire in different
temperatures of water.

Dependent Resistance of the wire The resistance of the wire will
change as the temperature
changes. To find the resistance,
I will measure the voltage and
current of the circuit and then
get the resistance by using the
formula: V=RI.

Fixed 1 Power Pack Voltage The battery voltage will be 6
volts throughout the entire
experiment so that it will be a
fair test.

Fixed 2 The material of the wire The material of wire will stay
the same throughout the
experiment so that it will be a
fair test. The material of the
wire will be Nickel Chromium
20 SWG.

Fixed 3 Experiment Equipment The equipment I will be using
in the experiment will stay the
same. For example, the water I
will be using will stay the same;
it will come from the same tap.
All of my equipment will stay
the same so that it will be a fair
test.

Fixed 4 Amount of time each wire will
be in the water
The amount of time the wire
will be in the water is 30
seconds. This way, the test will
be fair because each time the
wire will be able to absorb the
temperature in the same
amount of time.

Fixed 5 The length of the wire The length of the wire will be
15 cm each time so that it will
be a fair test.

Mony Grade 9A Science

September 17, 2014 3
1 large beaker
Tap water
1 Power Pack
1 Hot Plate
1 roll of Nickel Chromium 20 SWG wire
1 Meter stick (Ruler)
1 wire clippers
1 Thermometer
A few paper towels
1 forceps
A few Crocodile Clips
1 ammeter
1 voltmeter
Wooden platform
A timer

Method
1. Set up the experiment as shown in the diagram below. Be sure to have the
ammeter and voltmeter properly placed.












2. Cut the wire into one 15 cm strip
3. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
4. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 20C
5. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
6. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
7. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
8. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
9. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
10. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
11. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
12. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 25C
13. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
14. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
15. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
16. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
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September 17, 2014 4
17. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
18. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
19. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
20. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 30C
21. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
22. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
23. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
24. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
25. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
26. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
27. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
28. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 35C
29. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
30. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
31. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
32. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
33. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
34. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
35. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
36. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 40C
37. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
38. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
39. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
40. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
41. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
42. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
43. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
44. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 45C
45. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
46. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
47. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
48. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
49. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
50. Let the wire cool down for 30 seconds and pour out the left over water.
Make sure to dry the wire
51. Pour the water into the beaker until its full
52. Heat up the water using the Hot Plate until its 50C
53. Put the wire into the water and wait for exactly 30 seconds
54. Take the wire out of the water and put it onto the wooden platform
55. Attach the crocodile clips to both sides of the wire
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September 17, 2014 5
56. Turn on the Power Pack and set it to 6 volts
57. Record the current and the voltage of the circuit into the table down
below
58. Repeat all of these steps two more times (so that there will be three
trails)
59. Clean up the experiment

Raw Data
Trails
Temperature (C) Voltage (V) Current (A)
Trail 1 Trail 2 Trail 3 Average Trail 1 Trail 2 Trail 3 Average
20 0.07 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3
25 0.06 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3
30 0.07 0.06 0.06 0.06 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3
35 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3
40 0.06 0.08 0.07 0.07 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3

Processed Data (Averages and Resistance)
To find the resistance, I will use the formula R=V/I
Temperature (C) Voltage (V) Current (A) Resistance ()
20 0.05 0.3 0.17
25 0.05 0.3 0.17
30 0.06 0.3 0.2
35 0.07 0.3 0.23
40 0.07 0.3 0.23

Observations
Whenever some kind of material touches the wire or the crocodile clips,
the voltage changes
The current never changed
The wire never got hot
















Mony Grade 9A Science

September 17, 2014 6
Temperature and Resistance Data Graph


Conclusion
Previously, my hypothesis was that the higher the temperature of the
wire, the greater resistance it will have. After experimenting with the different
temperatures of a wire, I discovered that my hypothesis was correct. This can be
seen in the graph above as the slop in gradually increasing giving us the
impression that the resistance is getting bigger along with the temperature. Also,
science states that the increase in temperature will cause the atoms in the wire
to vibrate a lot more resulting in more collisions with the electrons. This is proof
that my hypothesis is correct and accurate. Ultimately, the temperature will
make it difficult for the electrons to move smoothly through the wire since there
is a high possibility that they will collide with the atoms.


Works Cited






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Temperature (C)
Temperature and Resistance