A 12-volt automotive battery uses a chemical reaction between its plates and an acid solution to create electrical energy by causing electrons to flow from negative to positive plates in its six cells. The electric current is primarily due to proton (hydrogen ion) current, which is in the same direction as the negative end inside the battery. Conventional theory states that current flows from the positive terminal of a battery to the negative terminal, while electron theory states that the actual flow of electrons is from the positive to the negative terminal.
To balance the flow of electrons, charged ions also flow through an electrolyte solution in contact with both electrodes. Different electrodes and electrolytes produce different chemicals, and a battery consists of three main components: two terminals made of different chemicals (typically metals), the anode and cathode, and the electrolyte. As the battery discharges, both electrodes become coated with lead sulfate, and sulfuric acid is converted into water.
A car battery stores energy in chemical form and converts it into electrical energy through an electro-chemical process. Four materials react with each other: hydrogen (H) lithium atoms in the anode get separated from their electrons again, ions pass through the electrolyte, and electrons flow through the outside circuit, which powers the motor.
Car batteries are no different than any other DC source, and current flows from plus to minus. Electrons move from negative to positive, and excess electrons flow out of the battery’s negative terminal and transmit throughout the car via battery cables. When connecting a load to the battery, the electrons scramble through the load to get to the positive terminal.
📹 Does Car Battery Electricity Flow Pos to Neg or Neg to Pos??
You know the positive terminal is called the power side but you also heard electrons flow from the negative terminal- so, what’s the …
How do electrons move through a battery?
A battery converts chemical energy into electrical energy through a closed circuit, producing electrons that collect on the negative terminal and move through the circuit to the positive terminal. A good conductor is necessary for this process to occur. There are various types of batteries, each using different materials and producing different voltages. A battery consists of several galvanic cells connected together, each with two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an electrolyte solution. Electrons are produced at the anode, while electrons are used at the cathode. The electrolyte solution allows ions to move between the cathode and anode, balancing electron movement.
A common battery reaction in a car is the disintegration of lead in sulfuric acid. In a lead-acid battery, each cell has two lead grids filled with spongy lead and one filled with lead oxide, immersed in sulfuric acid. The electrons produced at the anode collect on the negative terminal, while electrons returned to the cathode are used in a cathode reaction. Each cell produces 2 V, and in a car battery, six lead-acid cells are linked together in series to produce a total voltage of 12 V.
How does electricity flow through a car?
The current flows from the positive terminal of the battery to the vehicle’s body and then back to the negative earth terminal, which is referred to as an earth-return system. This system employs the use of wires of varying colors and resistance to facilitate the connection with power-consuming components. The wiring loom is a sophisticated system comprising wires that are routed at regular intervals. This configuration is designed to ensure safety and prevent electrocution.
Is it possible to have electron flow without voltage?
A circuit is a path for electric current to flow, with the unit of measurement being amperes or amps (A). It is a continuous flow of electric charge required for all electrical devices to function. Electrons are subatomic particles with a negative electrical charge, while insulators are substances that tightly hold onto electrons.
A parallel circuit allows current to flow through parallel paths, while a semiconductor is a substance that holds onto electrons with a strength between that of a conductor and an insulator. A series circuit connects all components along a single path, ensuring the same current flows through all components.
Visitation is the potential difference between two points in a circuit, such as the positive and negative ends of a battery. It is often described as the “push” or “force” of the electricity. It is possible to have voltage without current, but not without a current.
A voltmeter is an instrument used to measure the potential electric difference between two points in a circuit. Home Depot and Canadian Tire are two sources for purchasing Christmas tree mini-light bulbs.
Do batteries push or pull electrons?
A battery acts as a pump, pulling electrons from one end of a conducting wire and pushing them into the other. The difference in charge causes electrons to move towards the positive terminal of the battery, where they are removed. The negative terminal supplies more electrons to the wire, preventing charges from continually building up at the battery terminals. The energy required to drive this process comes from chemical reactions inside the battery.
Batteries convert chemical energy into electricity by connecting a wire between its negative and positive terminals, producing a steady stream of electrons (current). This current powers an electrical appliance, such as a light bulb, motor, or radio. The faster the electron flow, the greater the current.
An unused battery can still pack plenty of power for a year, but it only contains a fixed amount of reactants, and once these are used up, the chemical reactions stop, causing the battery to be dead.
Does current flow from positive to negative in a car battery?
The flow of electricity through a wire is from the negative terminal of a battery to the positive terminal, with negatively charged electrons moving in this direction. It would appear that positive charges move in the opposite direction, yet remain with their respective non-moving atoms. The electrons are attracted to the positively charged battery terminal or the subsequent positively charged atom, resulting in their movement.
How does current flow in a car battery?
The battery cell structure consists of two plate straps, one positive and one negative, connected to plates made of lead sheets. These plates are formed into grid-type structures, maximizing surface area and coated in a paste of lead oxide. The paste acts as a sponge, absorbing electrolyte liquid and improving battery performance. The size of the plate determines the current a battery can provide, but it doesn’t change the voltage. The materials used and the number of plates determine the voltage produced by each cell.
The grid holds the paste in place to ensure a uniform current distribution and helps transport electrons out of the battery and around the electrical circuit. The voltage produced by each cell is determined by the materials used and the number of plates.
Do electrons flow out of the positive side of a battery?
Electrons move from the positive terminal to the negative terminal in a battery without external connections. In galvanic cells, electrons flow along wiring and conductive electrodes, releasing and capturing at electrode and electrolyte boundaries. The classical Leclanché cell, based on $ce(ZnNH4ClMnO2)$ schema, has an ongoing reaction pushing released electrons to the wire at the anode, where oxidation occurs.
How does energy flow through a car?
Heat transfer in engines is crucial to maintain temperature in critical areas below material design limits. Calculating engine heat transfer is challenging due to periodic air and fuel flow and the engine’s complex geometry. Experimental results are primarily used, but recent advances in computational fluid dynamics are making it more possible. Most automotive six-cylinder engines, with a 4″ piston diameter and stroke, produce about 100 hp (75 kW). The heat transfer to the coolant and exhaust is about equal to the power produced, resulting in a heat transfer of about 75 kW to both areas.
Can electrons flow without voltage?
The concept of electromotive force (EMF) is a fundamental principle in electrical circuits, causing electrons to move in a specific direction. It is measured in volts and is essential for the functioning of an electrical circuit. Without an EMF, current would not flow in the wires, and the free electrons of atoms would move randomly. Therefore, removing the voltage source (EMF) from an electrical circuit would result in the absence of current.
Can current flow with 0 voltage?
In an electrical circuit, voltage is the cause, while current is the effect. Voltage is frequently described as the “push” or “force” of electricity. It can be either voltage or current, and a complete circuit necessitates the closure of a switch to permit the flow of current. In contrast, an open switch results in a broken circuit, thereby preventing current from flowing.
What way do electrons flow in a car battery?
Electrons are negatively charged and attract the positive end of a battery, while being repelled by the negative end. When a battery is connected to something that allows electrons to flow through it, they flow from negative to positive. However, electrons cannot move inside the battery without a chemical reaction, as it takes too much energy to put a plain electron in solution. Instead, charged chemicals, ions, dissolve off the electrodes, pushing electrons inside toward the negative end due to the different chemical stabilities of the electrodes.
Electrons flow around the circuit, pushing them toward the negative end inside the battery and towards the positive end in the outside circuit, pushed by the electrical voltage. Electrical current can also flow in the battery if connected to something with a larger voltage difference, such as a battery charger.
📹 Electron Flow Vs Conventional Current Flow
Electron flow and conventional current flow are two theories for the way electricity flows in a circuit. Conventional theory may make …
This brings back some old, dusty, memories. I first learned about this during electronics school in the Air Force in 1972/73. At that time they taught current flow from negative to positive. After serving 4 years in the AF I went to college to study electrical engineering. From an engineering perspective, current flows from positive to negative. I had to adjust my thinking about how to deal with voltage and current flow. In the end it all worked out and my brain adapted to the change.
As an Electrical Engineer, I found your explanation spot-on. I had forgotten much of the molecular/chemistry side, so I enjoyed the refresher. One thing… the “skin effect” that you were describing applies primarily to alternating current (AC). DC is happy to flow through the entire conductor. Multi-strand wires in DC applications are more for resilience to flexing w/o breaking.
I mostly agree. But… 1. AC ONLY: Electrons travelling on the ‘skin’ of the wire as a function of frequency, therefore not for DC. Skin depth for 60Hz= 8.5mm (8.5mm >> radius of most household wires). This is the ‘skin effect’. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_effect 2. Stranded wire is typically used for flexibility; it is also more expensive to manufacture. Stranded wires taking advantage of the skin effect are coated otherwise the skin effect would just move to the outside of the stranded bundle. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Litz_wire 3. Stranded wire of a given diameter (gauge) has a lower current capacity because of air space between the strands. Remember, gauge measures the diameter of the overall wire, NOT the overall cross-sectional area of available conductor. If one was to compare the cross-sectional surface area of a copper wire (not just the overall wire itself- the actual cross section of cooper only, not the air) for stranded and solid I believe the efficiencies are the same (for DC). 4. Power doesn’t “move”. Power is converted into heat in the wire (and work ==> mechanical force in the motor) because the electrons transferring (marching soldier) from one copper atom to another essentially bumps into the receiving copper atom’s valence shell imparting a tiny bit of kinetic energy from the moving electron to the atom (heat causes Temp to go up). This kinetic energy translated into random thermal motion which raise the temp of the wire (Temp is proportional to the random kinetic energy of the molecules in whatever you’re wanting to take the Temperature of).
Hey man, just wanted to take the time to let you know that what you do in this website is great. I stumbled into your website not long ago and since then I have learned much more that what a have from years of just perusal part changing tutorials. You are doing a great job keep doing what you are doing. BTW once I buy a scan tool I will be subscribing to your paid website.
Copper wire is also braided ( multi strand ) for flexibility. Compare house wire ( solid ) versus something like an extension cord or an appliance cord. The house wire is not subject to bending except during installation. The other examples are expected to handle lots of bending. Multi strand is more expensive to manufacture. I worked in a wire producing plant for 13 years as an operator.
This is the epitome of a great teacher! I love learning – I love thinking, and I love the feeling of accomplishment when I can apply both to solve some problems that I was told I couldn’t do based on lack of formal education. There are certain concepts and subjects that I felt Id always struggle to understand but now realize that if given a great teacher that there is really no limit to what one can grasp and possibly master. These articles are like hitting the lottery of understanding and learning! Im really grateful and even more excited.
you have impressed me…. my teacher told me energy flow from + to – but i never understand that.although i got an A in physics at A-level, you are the one who made me understand this….you are indeed a knowledgeble person… By the way,do you know how to change or modified wiring of a car. thank you
I’ve studied the ‘Basic Electrical for Beginners’ series on Schrodinger’s pay website. It took me a while to fully understand it, but I got there in the end – it’s an outstanding tutorial, which I fully recommend. But it seems that the chemistry side of things is just one step too far for me. I sucked at chemistry at school, meaning I probably just don’t have the aptitude for it. Never mind – it’s the first lesson I’ve failed to understand; I’ve amassed a plethera of knowledge from Schrodinger’s other articles. By a long chalk, the best teacher on YouTube. (2:40) “Well… that’s alright – if you have ADHD, you won’t comment because you won’t have the patience to do it.” LMAO!
Great job with the explanation Matt! I see that some folks have already mentioned the little boo-boos so no need to mention them. I like the introduction and the closing of the article as it’s amazing work to see it in action. Hope you’ve been doing pretty well, and I sure will be glad when the summer gets here. Have a good one Matt! 😊
Every significant energy of life is concentrated at the surface of matter; at the transition between varied density environments. Depth indicates potential supply of future surface . This is the ONLY benefit of volume using depth. Excellent information! Electrons are not bland spheres ;like marbles. They are live entities with a face patterned like a human or animal face. Sur(e) Face
The statement that power flows from the positive to the negative sounds wrong. I thought that current flowing from positive to negative was for convention but I’m not sure why. Perhaps its best to state that positive is power because the negative is ground in the case of cars these days. I’m no engineer but i did like physics at school. Please correct me if I’m wrong. Thanks for your articles BTW
Hi great article as always. I wonder if you can help .I live in uk I have an old 1987 ford xr2 with a mechanical fuel pump .the lobe has worn away so I was going to put a electric fuel pump on using a relay. Now can I use a feed from the primary side of the coil as the ignition switch to turn on the pump as only want it to be on when it running any help appreciated thanks
I’m not looking for parasitic draw, I want to install a Gauge. Type: RPM Gauge Measurement Range : 50 to 9999RPM Frequency: 20-20khz Operating temperature: 0 to 50°C The instructions are not clear, not sure what the w terminal is ? my alternator has no markings I don’t want to fry my PCM or the gage. Thank you for your time as you are the only one to answer my post- out of 8 others. Sorry if I’m wasting your time, just looking for a little help. INSTRUCTIONS Signal Input: Gets signal from w terminal of the alternator; Connecting speed sensor.
I gave up on this electron flow stuff as not really helpful and started thinking about power moving through a circuit. That electrons are the ones moving is only something necessary to know in vacuum tubes and welding arcs. If you cut a wire, nothing runs out the ends. Although if you drop the positive wire on a car body commoned to the negative battery post, you’ll get some electron flow in sparks and arcs. Power is made up of various combinations of current and voltage. 10V at 1A = 10Watts = 1V at 10A. And as with hydraulics, you have to have resistance to create “pressure”, i.e., voltage, across it. I did this because you reach an AC frequency where the electrons can’t flow anywhere given how fast the direction is changing. But an energy wave suffers no limitations.
Have you gone through explaining how the alternator works and check its integrity? I’m able to access my alternator load and it stays around 60% and commanded to 14.5 but it stays at 14.2 also detected by the PCM. There are times when I run the car for a bit, the charge is not kept or even goes down little. I have done the tests with the scope and everything seems fine but I needed for info, perhaps I’m missing something. Battery has tested ok at autozone, car may or may not turn on over night. It was consistent not turning on overnight but I cleaned the post connections and that seemed to help. Also it is worth to mention that I have replaced the battery around 3 times before and about a year of use, the same issue occurs.
I was under the impression that injectors are all collectively wired through some relay(s) back to B+, and that the ECU closes the circuit to ground to individually engaged them. So I’m looking at my harness in my Corolla and each injector has a solid red wire, then a unique multicolored wire. With my limited understanding, I am infinitely confused about why my test light lights up, with an audible relay click coming from the fuse box area, when I connect the light from B+ to any of the red wires on any harness. Same for the ignition coils actually. I have to be missing something trivial, because based on my understanding, this should not be possible. The red wire should virtually be the same path as my test light, yes? The only thing I can come up with is that it has to be an intrinsic behavior of the IGN relay involved, since this behavior ceases the moment I turn the key over on the ignition. Can anyone explain this to me? Does the relay take the power to ground until the key is in the ignition and then it flips to B+?
Now let me ask you a question Matt 🙂 can you power something with single wire? Or not use wires at all?? I think there are more ways to transfer power to devices than we were taught in school. I am a fan of Nikola Tesla and Eric Dollard, who replicated Tesla’s work, true legend. I think today’s concept of electricity is very useful, practical, but it does not reflect the true nature of how electricity works. I think there’s a lot more to it than that. I highly recommend Eric Dollard’s works (especially “History and Theory of Electricity” available on YouTube), and his explanations of electricity and music. Yes, music 😛 This is fascinating and worth the attention of anyone interested in electricity. I would love to hear Your opinion on his work. I’m sure you’re quite a busy person, so I only hope that in your free time you will be able to listen to this interesting bearded guy and, just like me, you will be intrigued by his presentation and his knowledge and will make You wonder what really electricity is 🙂 Thanks again for Your time !
hey, so, you totally forgot to mention the whole thing about the electrons are in a probability cloud and we can’t actually know where they are until you open the box and find the dead cat… errr wait i was commenting because i’m ADHD and take offense… err, what was i talking about again? cool article
Kinda painful to watch as physicist, sorry, but I guess there is no reason to make it more complicated then people here would understand. Let me clarify one thing, though: There are two different things. One is the electric current and the other is the electron flow. The electric current describes the flow of CHARGE and it is not constrained to solids. Charges themselves do not have to be electrons; you can have electric flow of protons or ion or any other charge carrying particle, which can have either positive or negative charge. A lot of school books and popular media talk about “physical current vs conventional current”, but it makes no sense because the definition of current in physics IS the conventional definition of current. (I = dQ/dt) That means the current ALWAYS flows form positive to negative, but the charge carriers can go either way and for electrons that is from minus to plus.
You lost me when you said that the power flows from positive to negative. After doing a wonderful explanation of electron flow, you just made us assume the power part. I’d really like to understand that part. Also, I have to disagree with your reasoning about stranded wire. It is stranded to make it more flexible. Heavy loads are mostly carried by bus bars, which are heavy copper (usually) single conductors. I have learned to refer electric flow as “conventional,” positive to negative, or “electronic,” negative to positive. And it is ok to think of it either way. Because it works either way.
Matt is usually so knowledgeble, but this article on basic electrical current flow is full of misfires. 1. Current direction: In wires, current does indeed relate to electon flow. The key points of confusion are (a), Current is defined to be rate of flow of charge, in a particular direction (unit: Amp = 1 Coulomb/sec)), and (b) an electron carries a negative charge, with 6.25 x 10^18 electron charges equal to negative one Coulomb . So when you account for electrons flowing in a particular direction (say from Battery negative to battery positive), that corresponds to a NEGATIVE current. The phenomena of electricity at the macroscopic level of voltage and current do not really care about the microscopic details, and a negative current referred to one direction is the same as a positive current in the other direction — as is confirmed by just swapping the leads on your ammeter. So saying “there’s a current from B+ to B-” is really just sloppy shortand for “the rate of flow of charge is positive, using B+ -> B as the reeference direction”. It does not imply what kind of charge carrying particles are involved, and their direction. In automitive we commonly deal with elecriciity in wires, where the charge carriers are electrons, but there are other possibilities, siuch as current in a liquid solution with positive ions. 2. Energy transportation: The discussion at 18:45 that energy is transported in a circuit from positive to negative via the jumping of electroncs from atom to atom is incorrecct, ( and not necessary to explain the “flow of something in the direction of positive to negative” which I just covered in point 1).
I just watched the Veritasium article on how electricity flows. And two well made response articles. And a “Science Asylum” article. Their point was that energy is transferred not through the wire, but through electromagnetic fields around the wire somehow. I couldn’t understand any of them, but I understood this (your) similar but different article completely. I bet you could probably explain it way better than they did if you made a article on it. I’m just saying. And I’m just bringing this to your attention. youtu.be/bHIhgxav9LY
Man I really appreciate your effort. However I have a friendly complaint. Most people perusal this are at least fogging a mirror. Drawing 18 dots on a ring and then connecting all the lines, really ?? The first 3/4 of this could have been explained reasonably accurately in just a few sentences. You got to the the part about flow one way and power the other and you just skipped over it. Spend less time on the obvious and more time where people might need thorough detailed explanations.
We have this MESS on our hands because Benjamin Franklin arbitrarily, (or, not), stated in his paper on electricity research that electrons flow from positive to negative, and, since he was the grand master mason of them all, everyone accepted this as the ultimate truth. However, when later, more advanced experiments showed that electrons, actually, move exactly the opposite way in real life, the “grateful sons of the grand master” could not make his good name be “tarnished” like that – ’cause, “the grand master never makes mistakes” – and, pulled this “duality”, we now know as the “Conventional Current Flow”, and “Electron Flow” out of their asses, and now, every student who studies Physics, Chemistry, etc…, should go through this pain, and learn both “theories”, just because somebody didn’t want to offend the memory of some guy, and his scientific blunder. … Yep, it is THIS idiotic!
The funny thing is when explaining this subject, it works both ways. I deal with electrons and it works great. Ben Franklin people deal with conventional flow and works for them. 🤣 Now, if we ever talk to people from outer space which way would they consider correct and the other a joke? 👽 War of the worlds of electrons.
In conductors, the charges that actually move are the electrons, or the negative charges which form the current. In other types of materials, such as semi conductors, both positive and negative charges are moving ” Theoretically”. Examples of such SEMI CONDUCTOR components are diodes and transistors. The main difference between conductors, semi conductors and non conductors ”or insulators” is the number of free electrons ” which is very large in conductors and very few in insulators”. Electrons are very light compared with THE positiveLY chargeED proton or neutral neutron, this is why, under some electromotive force or voltage or potential difference, electrons form the electric current in conductors. If you want to go deeper and ask, what is a free electron and why they are too many in conductors, you need to understand basic atomic theory which explains the distribution of electrons around the positive nucleus in a single atom; basically most of the elections in any atom are bound to the heavy positive nucleus, however in a single isolated conductor’s atom, there is usually one or two electrons called the valence electrons who are very loosely attached to the nucleus sine they are located far from the nucleus, these valence electrons become free electrons when millions of atoms compact together to form a conducting wire, they only need small voltage difference to move them in an electric circuit!!