Question

Microbes such as bacteria have small positive charges when in solution. Public health agencies are exploring a new way to measure the presence of small numbers of microbes in drinking water by using electric forces to concentrate the microbes. Water is sent between the two oppositely charged electrodes of a parallel-plate capacitor. Any microbes in the water will collect on one of the electrodes.

Required:
a. On which electrode will the microbes collect?
b. How could the microbes be easily removed from the electrodes for analysis?

Answer 1

The answer is below

Step-by-step explanation:

a) Coulomb's law of electric force for charges at rest states that Like charges repel each other while unlike charges attract one another.

Therefore since the microbes has small positive charges, the microbe would be repelled by the positively charged electrodes and attracted by the negative charged electrodes.

Hence, the microbes would collect on the negatively charged electrodes.

b) The microbes can easily removed from the negative electrode for analysis by discharging the electrode from the source. Thereby making the electrode to be incapable of attracting the microbe.