🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <20772@quacky.mips.COM> vaso@mips.COM (Vaso Bovan) writes:
}A Paradox of Capacitor Energy Storage
}
}I've heard several competing answers to this paradox. None is entirely
}satisfactory:
}
}Consider an ideal 2uF (for computational ease) capacitor charged by a 10 volt 
}source. Eventually, the energy stored is (1/2)*CV^2=100 joules.
}
}Consider the capacitor to be isolated from the voltage source, and then
}directly shorted across an identical (ideal) capacitor. Eventually, the
}voltage across each capacitor will be 5V. Now, there are two equally
}charged capacitors, each storing (1/2)*CV^2= 25 joules, for a total of
}of 50 joules.  What happened to the other 50 joules ?

     [etc., etc....  much discussion omitted...]

Hmmm...    U = 1/2 C V^2   (V = volts)
          Ke = 1/2 M V^2   (V = velocity)

Lessee: Two billiard balls, equal mass, one traveling...

      etc...    

In other words, discharging one cap into the other through a *real* world
circuit is equivalent to elastic collision and dissipated energy.

Whataya know; duality everywhere!

Dave        dbell@cup.portal.com