| | Category | PH | P26 | Insulators: Is Wood an Insulator or Conductor? |
| | Abstract | Inquiry into the Conductivity of Wood When Wet |
| | The purpose of this experiment was to determine if wood, when saturated |
| | with water transitions from an insulator into a conductor, and if it does, |
| | will the density and species of wood affect its ability to become a |
| | conductor when wet. |
| | To conduct this experiment, multiple samples of various wood species |
| | were submerged in water for specified times after which measurements |
| | of mass, volume, density, and conductivity were taken and compared to |
| | prior values. The data from the determinations of mass, volume, density, |
| | and conductivity for each wood species were then averaged and graphed |
| | according to their resistance and absorption. |
| | The wood species used in the experiment were cherry, hickory, maple, |
| | African mahogany, pine, poplar, and Red oak. Six samples of each of the |
| | seven species were tested using a multimeter and the resistance was |
| | recorded; for each piece, mass and volume were recorded, and density |
| | was calculated. Then after submersion in 300mL of room temperature tap |
| | water for 20-minutes increments, for a total of 60minutes, resistance and |
| | mass were again measured and recorded, along with calculating the |
| | amount of water absorbed by each piece of wood after each submersion. |
| | For the most part, the data indicated that as absorption of water |
| | increased, resistance decreased. |
| | Observed were the changes in the amount of water absorbed for each |
| | time increment, as well as the resistance of each piece of wood. There |
| | was a strong correlation between absorption and resistance. |
| | Bibliography | Bodanis, David. Electric Universe: The True Story of Electricity. New |
| | York: Crown Publishers, 2005.Edlin, Herbert Leeson. What Wood is that? |
| | A Manual of Wood Identification. New York: Thames & Hudson, 1969. |