Re: Why does ripping a BAND-AID (or similar bandage) wrapper produce light?

Date: Tue Aug 8 20:08:43 2000
Posted By: William Beaty, Electrical Engineer / Physics explainer / K-6 science textbook content provider
Area of science: Physics
ID: 964555666.Ph

Message:

Hi Adela!
This is thought to be caused by electric discharge; a bunch of tiny sparks. Whenever tape is peeled from a surface, both the surface and the tape's adhesive become strongly charged. I have an article on my website about this:

Sticky Electrostatics
http://www.amasci.com/emotor/sticky.html

Here's an article about this:

"In the peel zone: Tape's electric gooeyness,"
by I. Peterson, SCIENCE NEWS,
Vol 146, p277 Oct. 29, 1994

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