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Question

Silver is a good conductor of electricity yet electricity wires are not made up of silver. Why?


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Solution

Electricity wires are not made up of silver

Most metals can typically conduct electricity up to a certain level. The best conductors of electricity, according to tests, have been discovered to be pure silver, pure copper, pure gold, and pure aluminum. Despite its ability to conduct electricity well, silver is not typically utilized in electrical wiring for the following reasons:

  1. The best conductor of electricity is silver, which is the most expensive in its pure form.
  2. Making silver wires is not economically possible because it would be expensive.
  3. Compared to copper, silver is a much rarer metal.
  4. Silver tarnishes and oxidizes quickly when exposed to air.

Due to the above-mentioned factors, copper, the second-best material, is frequently used in wires since it is affordable.

Hence due to the above reasons, the electrical wires are not made up of silver.


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