CLIL: Conductors and Insulators

Silver is the best conductor of electricity. However, it is costly and so, we don’t use silver in industries and transmission of electricity.
Copper, Brass, Steel, Gold, and Aluminium are good conductors of electricity. We use them mostly in electric circuits and systems in the form of wires.
Mercury is an excellent liquid conductor that finds use in many instruments.
Gases are not good conductors of electricity as the particles of matter are quite far away and thus, they are unable to conduct electrons.

Applications of Conductors

Conductors are quite useful in many ways. They find used in many real-life applications like:

Mercury is a common ingredient in thermometer to check the temperature of the body.
Aluminium finds use in making foils to store food and also in the production of fry pans to store heat quickly.
Iron is common in vehicle engine manufacturing to conduct heat.
The plate of an iron is made up of steel to absorb heat briskly.
Conductors find their use in car radiators to eradicate heat away from the engine.

Glass is the best insulator as it has the highest resistivity.
Plastic is a good insulator and it finds its use in making a number of things.
Rubber is a common component in making tyres, fire-resistant clothes and slippers. This is because it is a very good insulator.

Being resistive to flow of electron, insulators find application worldwide in a number of ways. Some of the common uses include:

Thermal Insulators, disallow heat to move from one place to another. We use them in making thermoplastic bottles, in fireproofing ceilings and walls.
Sound Insulators help in controlling noise level, as they are good in absorbance of sound. Therefore, we use them in buildings, conference halls, and buildings to make them noise-free
Electrical Insulators hinder the flow of electron or passage of current through them. We use them extensively in circuit boards, high-voltage systems and also in coating electric wire and cables.

A conductor allows current to flow through it.

Insulators don’t allow current to flow through it.

Electric charge exists on the surface of conductors.

Electric charges are absent in insulator.

Conductor don’t store energy when kept in a magnetic field.

Insulators store energy when kept in a magnetic field.

Thermal conductivity ( heat allowance) of a conductor is very high.

Thermal conductivity of an insulator is very low.

The resistance of a conductor is very low.

The resistance of insulator is very high

Copper, Aluminium, and Mercury are some conductors.

Wood, paper and ceramic are some insulators.

Conductors are used in making electrical equipment. Insulators are used in insulating electrical equipment for safety purpose.

Question: How can you increase the conductivity of water?

Solution: Water is a good conductor of electricity. However, if you want to increase its conductivity, you can add some salt to it.