How to Measure the Electrical Resistance of a House Brick?

  • Thread starter jkl34
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In summary, designing an experiment to test the electrical resistance of a house brick between 20 and 800 degrees Celsius can be challenging. You will need to determine the appropriate voltage by conducting initial tests with different voltages. To measure current, consider measuring the rate of temperature change of the brick and relating it to electrical power. Additionally, you will need to determine the heat capacity of the brick and measure the heat energy using calorimeters. It is important to keep safety in mind, so heating the brick to 800 degrees Celsius may not be advisable. Instead, you can heat the brick to a lower temperature and extrapolate the data. Refer to the provided link for further discussion and resources on this topic.
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jkl34
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Will somebody please help me i'v got to design an experiment to test the electrical resistance of a house brick between 20 and 800oc, and i don't know where to start or look :cry: all i know is that wires can be connected to the brick by the use of conductive paint
 
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  • #2
jkl34 said:
Will somebody please help me i'v got to design an experiment to test the electrical resistance of a house brick between 20 and 800oc, and i don't know where to start or look :cry: all i know is that wires can be connected to the brick by the use of conductive paint
You will need a high voltage in order to get any current at all. The problem is that in order to determine the appropriate voltage, you need to know the order of magnitude of the resistance of the brick, so you need to do some initial tests with different voltages to determine that. How would you do that?

In order to measure current, I would suggest you consider measuring the rate of temperature change of the brick and relate that to the electrical power. You would have to determine the heat capacity of the brick first. How would you do those things?

To do it for different temperatures, you could just use the electrical power to heat the brick and measure the power consumption as a function of heat of the brick. With enough voltage you might be able to get it to 800 deg. C. Do you know how you could measure the heat energy of the brick? Have you used calorimeters?

AM
 
  • #3
Heating the brick to 800 deg. C. would be too dangerous and you will have to take this into consideration for your plan. What you can do is heat the brick to a lower temperature, eg. 200 deg. C. and then draw a graph and extrapolate it out to the required temperatures.
 

Related to How to Measure the Electrical Resistance of a House Brick?

1. What is resistivity?

Resistivity is a measure of a material's ability to resist the flow of electric current. It is typically denoted by the symbol ρ (rho) and is measured in ohm-meters (Ω·m).

2. What is the resistivity of a house brick?

The resistivity of a house brick can vary depending on the type of brick, but on average, it is around 10,000 ohm-meters (Ω·m).

3. How is the resistivity of a house brick measured?

The resistivity of a house brick can be measured using a device called a multimeter. The multimeter applies a known voltage to the brick and measures the resulting current. The resistivity can then be calculated using Ohm's Law (ρ = V/I).

4. Why is resistivity important for building materials?

Resistivity is important for building materials because it affects their ability to conduct electricity. High resistivity materials, such as house bricks, are used to insulate against electrical currents and protect against electrical hazards.

5. Can the resistivity of a house brick change over time?

Yes, the resistivity of a house brick can change over time due to factors such as moisture, temperature, and chemical exposure. It is important to regularly monitor and maintain the electrical properties of building materials to ensure safety and efficiency.

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