An electrician is trying to decide which kind of material to use to wire a house.

Question

• carbon steel: conductivity = 1.43 × 10-7, resistance = 1 × 1010
• copper: conductivity = 5.96 × 107, resistance = 1.68 × 10-8
• gold: conductivity = 4.11 × 107, resistance = 2.44 × 10-8
• iron: conductivity = 1 × 107, resistance = 1.0 × 10-7
Based on this information, which material should the electrician use?
(1 point)
• gold
carbon steel
• iron
copper

Answer 1

To determine which material the electrician should use for wiring a house, we need to focus on the conductivity of each material, as higher conductivity indicates better performance for electrical wiring.

Here are the conductivities of the materials provided:

• Carbon Steel: \(1.43 \times 10^{-7} , \text{S/m}\)
• Copper: \(5.96 \times 10^{7} , \text{S/m}\)
• Gold: \(4.11 \times 10^{7} , \text{S/m}\)
• Iron: \(1 \times 10^{7} , \text{S/m}\)

Comparing these values, we see that:

1. Copper has the highest conductivity (\(5.96 \times 10^{7} , S/m\)).
2. Gold has a lower conductivity (\(4.11 \times 10^{7} , S/m\)).
3. Carbon steel and iron have even lower conductivities.

Based on conductivity alone, copper clearly outperforms the other materials, making it the best choice for wiring.

Therefore, the electrician should use copper.