In both physics and electricity we talk about potential energy. It is one of the two main types of energy and is what is responsible for storing an object and that depends on its position with respect to other objects. It also depends on the existence of a force field within it and other factors. Potential energy is widely used both in the field of physics and electricity.
Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to tell you everything you need to know about it.
Main types of energy
Although all this seems quite complicated to understand, let's see what are the main types of energy that exist.
- Kinetic energy: is the associated something in motion. For example, the blades of a windmill have kinetic energy when the wind blows. It is capable of being converted into electricity if they are to be used.
- Potential energy: It is one that is stored in order to overcome its position with respect to other objects. For example, a ball that stands tall has a higher potential energy relative to ground level.
We are going to see how an object can have energy in these two ways. To do this, let's imagine a cannonball. When the cannonball has not yet fired, all energy it possesses is in the form of potential energy. The amount of this energy depends on some factors such as the position with respect to other objects. When it is fired, all this energy becomes kinetic since the gun goes out at high speed. The projectile stores a large amount of kinetic energy but less than potential. As they slow down, they have less kinetic energy and when they come to a complete stop, they return to potential energy.
Examples of potential energy
In order to better understand all this, we are going to give some of the examples. Let's think about the balls that are used for the demolition of buildings. When the ball is completely stopped and is not being used, it has potential energy stored. This energy comes from where it is with respect to other objects. When the ball begins to be in motion, it moves like a pendulum to hit the part of the building to be demolished. It is in the action of movement that the ball begins to have kinetic energy. When it moves and hits the wall it again has potential energy and less kinetic energy.
As we go raising the ball in height we store more and more potential energy. This is because the Earth's gravity pulls the ball with greater force the higher it is. Therefore, if the cannonball is suspended at a height of three stories, it will have much more energy than one that is three centimeters high. All of this is easy to see given the effects they have when dropped at the same time. This is the reason why it is said that the amount of potential energy of an object depends on its position or the force exerted by gravity on it.
Types of potential energy
We know that an object can store this type of energy and can be converted into other types depending on what happens next. Let's see what are the different types that exist:
- Gravitational potential energy: It is the one that has an object due to the attraction of the earth. The higher you are, the more you have. It is not the only one, since gravitational energy can interact with another larger object.
- Chemical potential energy: It is the one that has the object stored according to how two atoms and molecules are arranged. We know that atoms and molecules can be ordered differently depending on the state of the object itself. It also depends on its composition. Molecules have certain chemical bonds and may or may not cause a reaction. For example, when we eat we transform food into chemical energy and some foods will generate more calories than others. The same occurs with fuels such as oil, which is capable of storing a large amount of potential energy to later transform them into electricity and heat.
- Electric potential energy: It is one that has an object depending on the electrical charge. It can be electrostatic or magnetic. A vehicle can store some electrostatic potential energy and it was a small discharge when touched.
- Nuclear potential energy: It is what is in the particles of the atomic nucleus. They are united by the nuclear force and when we break these unions we cause nuclear fission and we create enormous energy. We extract this energy from radioactive elements such as uranium and plutonium.
Electricity and elasticity
There is also a type of elastic potential energy that has to do with the electricity property of matter. Elasticity is the tendency to recover the original shape of a body after being subjected to deforming forces. These forces must be greater than your resistance. An example of elastic energy is that of a spring when it is stretched. When returning to its initial position, this force is no longer applied.
A very clear example of elastic potential energy is a bow and arrow. The elastic energy reaches the maximum value as the arc is thought a while pulling the elastic fiber. This tension makes the wood bend slightly but there is still no speed, so there is no kinetic energy. When we release the string and the arrow begins to shoot, the elastic energy is converted to kinetic energy.
As we know, in electricity we also apply this concept. And it can be transformed into other forms of energy such as kinetic, light, thermal, etc. All these possibilities are given as a result of the versatility of electromagnetism.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about potential energy, its characteristics and operation.