Electrical conductivity measures how well materials allow electrons to flow. Conductivity is the reciprocal of resistivity. Temperature and purity affect conductivity and resistivity. Soil electrical conductivity measures salinity and other soil properties. Impurities affect conductivity differently, with minerals increasing it. Alloys are not useful for conducting electricity. Materials that naturally contain air pockets are good insulators. Modern chemistry has created materials with high resistivity.
Electrical conductivity (EC) is a property that is used to describe how well materials allow electrons to flow. It is determined using experiments and mathematical equations. Conductivity is the reciprocal of resistivity, which means that the higher the conductivity, the lower the resistivity. A conductor is a material that has a high electrical conductivity and an insulator is a material that has a high electrical resistivity. Both properties depend on the temperature and the purity of the materials.
The temperature dependence of electrical conductivity follows a general pattern. Metal is a conductor and has lower conductivity at higher temperatures. Glass is an insulator and exhibits greater conductivity at higher temperatures.
At very high temperatures, conductors behave like insulators and insulators behave like conductors. This behavior of insulators and conductors is explained by the free electron model. In this model, conductors clearly exhibit the ability to release electrons, and when a current, or electric force, is applied, the force can easily push around the extra electrons.
Soil is a mixture of minerals, salts and organic materials. It has a special electrical conductivity called soil electrical conductivity, which measures the amount of salt found in a soil sample, which is called its salinity. The process can also measure other soil properties where the salinity is low enough. These properties are related to the influence that purity has on the CE data.
EC data from a soil sample can determine the amount of impurities present in the soil. Soil impurities are water, air and minerals. Each impurity affects the data differently, but an experienced soil scientist can determine this information from the collected data. In general, more impurities lower EC, with the exception of minerals which increase it. Impurities can also explain the use of pure copper in electrical wiring.
Metals are often made up of alloys, a mixture of two or more elements. This is not useful for conducting electricity. Metals in alloys are not the same elements and electrons cannot flow easily between different elements. Pure metals, such as copper wire, have high electrical conductivity. This only applies to solid metals because air pockets can reduce the materials electrical conductivity.
Materials that aren’t metals are usually good insulators. The best insulators are materials that naturally contain air pockets, such as rubber. Air pockets are like impurities and disrupt the flow of electrons. Gases, like air, are the best natural insulators. Modern chemistry has mastered insulators, creating materials that have resistivity thousands of times greater than air.
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