Question

Two balloons with charges of +5.00 µC and -8.00 C attract each other with a force of 0.0626 N. Determine the separation distance between the two balloons.
Given k =9.0 x 109 Nm2/C2

Answer 1

Repeated subtraction is a method of subtracting the equal number of items from a larger group. It is also known as division. If the same number is repeatedly subtracted from another larger number until the remainder is zero or a number smaller than the number being subtracted, we can write that in the form of division

Answer 2

q₁ = 5 μC

q₂ = - 8. μC

F = 0.0626 N

Let the distance between the two balloons be d.

We know that, force between two charges is given by coulomb's law.

Hence, by Coulomb's law,

F = (1/4πε₀) [(q₁ q₂) / d²]

∴ 0.0626 = (9 × 10⁹) ( 5× 10⁻⁶ × 8. × 10⁻⁶ ) ÷ d²

∴ d² = 5.75≈ 6

∴ d = 2.44m