static electricity

1. An accumulation of electric charge on an insulated body.
2. Electric discharge resulting from the accumulation of electric charge on an insulated body.

Electric charge at rest, generally produced by friction or electrostatic induction. Triboelectrification is the process whereby charge transfer between dissimilar materials, at least one of which must have a high electrical resistivity, occurs due to rubbing or mere contact. See also Electric charge; Electrical resistivity.

In modern industry, highly insulating synthetic materials, such as plastic powders and insulating liquids, are used in large quantities in an ever-increasing number of applications. Such materials charge up readily, and large quantities of electrical energy may develop with an attendant risk of incendiary discharges. When, for example, powder is pneumatically transported along pipes, charge levels of up to about 100 microcoulombs per kilogram can develop and potentials of thousands of volts are generated within powder layers and the powder cloud. Energetic sparking from charged powder may initiate an explosion of the powder cloud. Similar problems occur when insulating liquids, such as certain fuels, are pumped along pipes, and it is essential that strict grounding procedures are followed during the refueling of aircraft, ships, and other large vehicles.

The capacity of a person for retaining charge depends upon stature, but is typically about 150 picofarads. Even the simple operations of removing items of clothing or sliding off a chair can lead to body discharges to ground of about 0.1 μC, which are energetic enough to ignite a mixture of natural gas and air. Human body capacitance is sufficiently high that, if poorly conducting shoes are worn, body potential may rise to 15,000 V or so above ground during industrial operations such as emptying bags of powder. Sparking may then occur with energy exceeding the minimum ignition energy of powder or fumes, so initiating a fire or explosion. Conducting footware should be used to prevent charge accumulation on personnel in industrial situations where triboelectrification may occur. See also Capacitance.

In the microelectronics industry, extremely low-energy discharges, arising from body potentials of only a few tens of volts, can damage microelectronics systems or corrupt computer data. During the handling of some sensitive semiconductor devices, it is imperative that operators work on metallic grounded surfaces and are themselves permanently attached to ground by conducting wrist straps. See also Electrostatics.

A stationary electrical charge that is the result of intentional charging or of friction in low-humidity environments.

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An electrical charge that accumulates on an object when it is rubbed against another object — for example, the spark that jumps from someone's hand to a doorknob after the person has walked across a rug.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: electricity produced by friction