An electrical appliance is connected to the UK mains supply using a standard three-core cable containing a fuse.
What colour is the insulation covering the live wire in a standard three-core mains cable?
A fuse wire in a mains plug melts to isolate a faulty appliance when a charge of 1.95 C1.95\text{ C}1.95 C passes through it in 150 ms150\text{ ms}150 ms. Calculate the current in the fuse wire during this interval.
Upon reaching its melting point, an additional energy input of 1.35 J1.35\text{ J}1.35 J is required to transition the solid fuse wire entirely into liquid.
The specific latent heat of fusion of the fuse alloy is 90 kJ/kg90\text{ kJ/kg}90 kJ/kg.
Calculate the mass of the fuse wire.
In practice, some thermal energy is transferred from the wire to the surrounding air and plastic casing during heating. State how this heat loss affects the time taken for the fuse to melt and explain your answer.
Practise AQA GCSE Physics Domestic uses and safety with exam-style questions for Foundation and Higher tier. 13 questions covering Direct and alternating potential difference and Mains electricity, matched to the AQA GCSE Physics (8463) specification and written in Paper 1 and Paper 2 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.