Capacitors can store and discharge electric currents.
A capacitor is an electrical component that stores up currents when you pass voltage through it. When the voltage across the capacitor drops, it discharges the stored current. The more voltage you charge a capacitor with, the more energy it stores. Capacitors don't generate voltage, but each capacitor has a specific voltage rating. The voltage rating indicates the maximum voltage rating that a capacitor can handle before it explodes. You can wire multiple capacitors together to create what is effectively a single capacitor with a very high voltage rating. If you have a high voltage power source you can charge a "capacitor bank" with tremendous amounts of current.
Instructions
1. Calculate the number and type of capacitors you'll need based on the voltage with which you want to charge the capacitors. The voltage capacity of a series of capacitors is the sum of the voltage ratings of the individual capacitors. In practice, you should use capacitors with a higher voltage rating than you actually need. Exceeding the rated voltage of a capacitor can make it explode.
2. Connect your capacitors together in a series, so that they form a daisy chain. If you're using polarized capacitors you need to make sure that the capacitors are oriented correctly. Reversing the polarity of a capacitor can cause it to explode even at low voltages. Connect the cathode of the first capacitor to the anode of the second, connect the cathode of the second capacitor to the anode of the third, and so on.
3. Calculate the total capacitance of the capacitor series. Total capacitance is the reciprocal of the sum of the reciprocals of the capacitance values of the capacitors in the series. Therefore, the more capacitors in a series the lower the overall capacitance. To increase capacitance, wire multiple series of capacitors in parallel. The total capacitance value of capacitors wired in parallel is the sum of the individual capacitance. The higher the capacitance, the more quickly and powerfully the bank will discharge.
4. Connect the capacitor bank to a voltage source. If you're using polarized capacitors, make sure that the negative voltage terminal is connected to the cathode of the capacitor bank and the positive voltage terminal is connected to the anode. The capacitor will charge up until the voltage across the capacitor bank is the same as the source voltage. The higher the voltage, the longer it will take. For very high voltages (in the tens of thousands of volts) use a neon sign transformer as a power source.
5. Disconnect the capacitor bank from the power source.
6. Connect the leads of the capacitor bank through a resistive load. The capacitor will discharge its stored up current through the load, with potentially explosive results if you're using high voltage.
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