The immediate cause of many deaths is ventricular fibrillation, which is an unco

Question

The immediate cause of many deaths is ventricular fibrillation, which is an uncoordinated quivering of the heart. An electric shock to the chest can cause momentary paralysis of the heart muscle, after which the heart sometimes resumes its proper beating. One type of defibrillator (photo below) applies a strong electric shock to the chest over a time interval of a few milliseconds. This device contains a capacitor of several microfarads, charged to several thousand volts. Electrodes called paddles are held against the chest on both sides of the heart, and the capacitor is discharged through the patient's chest. Assume an energy of 270 J is to be delivered from a 30.0-

Explanation / Answer

The immediate cause of many deaths is ventricular fibrillation, an uncoordinated quivering of the heart as opposed to rhythmic and steady beating. An electric current passing through the chest can cause momentary paralysis of the heart muscle, after which the heart will sometimes restart its organized beating. Assume that an energy of 350 J paralysis of the heart muscle, after which the heart will sometimes restart its organized beating. Assume that an energy of 350 J is to be delivered to the chest from a defibrillator having a 30 µF capacitance. To what potential difference (in V) must the defibrillator be charged?

E = QV/2 = V^2C/2 thus V = sqrt(2E/C)

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