Abstract
DC motors are employed and used in various applications to perform various tasks which require the conversion of electric current to mechanical motions. In most cases, DC motors are used as actuators to convert the electric current from the output of a control system to a mechanical motion for a present function. This experiment employed the use of simple and easily available materials to construct a simple homemade DC motor. The project used basic components such as coil of wire, permanent magnet and simple dc battery to construct a simple device which demonstrated the operation of a simple DC motor.
Introduction
A DC electric motor is used to convert electric current to mechanical rotation through the use of electromagnetic fields. It employs the relationship between current and electromagnetic fields to convert electrical energy into mechanical energy. The project employed the use of simple materials to construct a simple dc electric motor. Simple DC homemade motor uses a simple push-and-pull principle of magnets to create a simple rotary motion. The aim of the experiment is to show the relationship between electric current and electromagnetic field. Also, it indicates how electric current can be transformed into mechanical energy through the use of a simple homemade DC motor (ScienceOnline, 2012).
DC motors employs the principle of electromagnetic rotation. It is a known fact that the like poles of a magnet repels while the unlike poles attract. Also, when current is passed through a wire, electromagnetic effect is generated. These two simple principles are used in the construction of a simple DC motor. A magnetic field is generated when current is passed through a coil of wire or conductor. If a current carrying conductor is placed in a magnetic field results into some type of motion as a result of the electromagnetic effect generated in the wire. The shape of the current carrying conductor determines the type of motion generate by the devices. The current is passed through a coiled wire to form an electromagnet with both north and south-pole.
Materials
The following materials were used in the experiment to construct a simple DC motor;
Magnet wire (1.5 meters of 25 gauge magnet wire)
Double A battery (1.5 V AA alkaline battery)
Aluminum baking sheet
Ruler
Push Pin
A permanent magnet
A block of wood
Experimental Procedure
The magnet wire was used to construct the coil used in electro-magnet. A double A battery was used to wind the 1.5 meter 25 guage magnet wire to form a coil. About four centimeters of at both ends of the wire were left exposed while the rest of the wire was used to make the coil. The coil was carefully removed from the battery and the remaining wire was used to loop the coil two or three times. The securing loops were tired directly across from each other to ensure balance of the coil. The two exposed side of the wire were used as the shaft for the motor. A sand paper was used to remove the insulation at the end of each side of the wire to allow electricity to enter the coil (ScienceOnline, 2012).The leads of the sand paper were folded and used to remove the insulation at both ends of the wire coil. The coil was gradually rotated while removing the insulation to ensure that the insulation was removed completely from both ends of the wire. The excess wire stretched during the removal of the insulation is looped back in the coil.
Aluminum baking sheets were used to make the metal brackets for the motor. A ruler was used to measure 1.5 centimeters by 5 centimeters on the aluminum sheet. A cutter was used to cut out two parts of the measured sections to form two metals brackets measuring 1.5 by 5 centimeters. The metal pieces were folded in the center and a small push pin was used to create a hole at one end of each of the brackets.
A ruler was used to align the two brackets on top of the wooden block. The permanent magnet was used as a spacer while leaving a small space between the magnet and the brackets. Two thumb tags were used to secure each of the brackets on top of the wooden block. The thumb tags were used to secure a wire to each bracket to ensure a metal to metal contact. The coil was mounted by sliding each ends into the hole in the brackets. The coil was adjusted to the center to ensure that it was balanced and not handing. The permanent magnet was slid under the coil irrespective of the pole. The terminals of the wires were connected to the terminals of the double A battery (ScienceOnline, 2012).
Result
When the two terminal wires connecting the end of the coil were attached to the terminals of the battery, the coil rotated. A continuous rotation was witnessed as long as the wire terminals were connected to the battery. The rotation stopped when the wires were detached from the battery.
Discussion
Electricity is the flow of the electrons from the negative terminals to the positive terminal. Electrons flow from the negative terminal of the battery through the wire to the one side of the coil through the brackets. It passes through the wire coil creating a magnetic field which transforms the coil to an electromagnet (ScienceOnline, 2012).The generated magnetic field interacts with the magnetic field created by the permanent magnet to create a mechanical motion of the coil. The connection back to the positive terminal of the battery completes the circuit.
Conclusion
The experiment demonstrated the operation of a simple DC motor through the use of simple and available materials. The coil and the battery were used to create an electromagnet which interacted with the permanent magnet to generate a rotary motion.
References
ScienceOnline,. (2012). Build An Electric DC motor. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elFUJNodXps
