Question:

After five minutes of use, a 1Ah capacity battery has lost 0.5Ah of capacity. Calculate the average current draw over the five minute period.

Believe it or not, I haven't actually been set this question as homework.
I am merely curious and constructed it myself. I am fairly certain that it can be answered, but I'm not sure how. Help of any sort would be appreciated :)

capacity= current*timeinHours

.5Ah= current(5/60) solve for current

To calculate the average current draw over the five-minute period, you need to use the formula:

Average Current = Change in Charge / Change in Time

In this case, the change in charge can be calculated by subtracting the initial charge from the final charge, and the change in time is given as 5 minutes.

Let's break it down step by step:

1. Convert the given capacity of the battery from Ampere-hours (Ah) to Coulombs (C). Since 1 Ah is equal to 3600 C, the battery's initial charge is 1 Ah * 3600 C/Ah = 3600 C.

2. Determine the final charge of the battery after losing 0.5 Ah of capacity. Since the capacity decreased by 0.5 Ah, the final charge would be 3600 C - (0.5 Ah * 3600 C/Ah) = 3600 C - 1800 C = 1800 C.

3. Calculate the change in charge by subtracting the initial charge from the final charge: Change in Charge = 1800 C - 3600 C = -1800 C. Note that the negative sign indicates a decrease in charge.

4. Calculate the average current draw by dividing the change in charge by the change in time: Average Current = -1800 C / 5 minutes = -360 A/min.

Therefore, the average current draw over the five-minute period is estimated to be -360 A/min. The negative sign indicates that the current flow is in the opposite direction of the battery's charge.