Interesting Uses for Electromagnets
Electromagnets have various applications that people use everyday, from electronic products to industrial uses. The history of electromagnets can be traced back to 1820 when Hans Christian Oersted observed that a wire bearing an electric current produced a magnetic field. This discovery was one of several that led to today's electric magnet.
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Industrial Uses
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Electric magnets have interesting, practical uses in industry. One industrial use is sorting out metals. Some of the elements that are used in manufacturing, such as iron, nickel, cobalt and natural minerals, respond to an electromagnet because of their magnetic properties.
Another industrial use of an electric magnet involves picking up extremely heavy objects. An example of this is the use of an electromagnet attached to the end of a crane to pick up metal objects in a junkyard. This application is most commonly associated with picking up junk automobiles.
Maglev Trains
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Maglev trains, part of Japan's high speed railway system, utilize conducting magnets on the railway and on the bottom of the train to enable the train to float above the rails. This process is accomplished by magnetic repulsion. Magnetic repulsion occurs when the north pole of a magnet is placed next to the north pole of another magnet; in order for magnets to come together, the north pole of a magnet has to be placed next to the south pole of another magnet. Japan's Maglev trains can travel at an excess of 341 miles per hour.
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Uses for Livestock
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Cows sometime ingest foreign objects, some of which are metal. Beginning in 1937, veterinarians used electromagnets to treat livestock who ingested metal objects. In the earliest methods, the vet would anesthetize a cow, make an incision and insert an electromagnet to pick up the metallic objects the cow had eaten. Today many cattle ranchers give their cattle a magnetic pill that will adhere to a metal object to pull the object back into the stomach or keep the object from migrating to vital organs. Some cattle ranchers also use electromagnets as a preventive measure by making their entire processed feed pass over a magnet to remove any metal.
Electromagnetic Locks
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Electromagnets can be used in a door's locking system. An electromagnetic lock works by using a strong magnetic field between the electromagnet and a magnetic plate attached to the door. When there is an electric current passing through the magnet, the magnet and magnetic plate stick together, locking the door. Some doors with electromagnetic locks use a plunger between the doors; the magnet extends the plunger to lock the door and releases the plunger to unlock.
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