2.4.8

Dangers of the Live Wire

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Dangers of the Live Wire

The live wire carries a large amount of electrical energy so can be dangerous.

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Dangerous even when power is off

  • A live wire can still be dangerous when the mains switch is open (i.e. the plug socket or light switch is turned off).
  • This is because it might still hold some potential difference.
  • If you touched the live wire, your body would supply a link between the supply and the ground.
    • This is an electric shock.
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Electric shock

  • An electric shock from the mains electricity supply could be fatal (could kill you).
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Connecting live wire to earth wire

  • The live wire and the earth wire can never be in contact because this would remove the safety feature of the earth wire.
  • This would also take a huge amount of current, which would overpower the fuse.
    • The fuse would melt and could explode.

Jump to other topics

1Energy

2Electricity

3Particle Model of Matter

4Atoms & Radiation

5Forces

5.1Basics of Motion

5.2Forces

5.3Effects of Forces

5.4Pressure

6Waves

7Magnetism

8Astrophysics

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