Science Assessment ~ Items ~ RG206001

A battery is connected to a capacitor in a closed circuit. A capacitor is a device that is composed of two large conductive plates separated by a nonconductive insulating layer. When the battery is connected to the capacitor, a chemical reaction occurs in the battery that causes one of the plates in the capacitor to acquire a negative charge and the other an equal amount of positive charge. Which of the following describes how energy changes while the capacitor is being charged by the battery?

Matter inside the battery is converted into electrostatic potential energy in the capacitor.
Matter inside the battery is converted into kinetic energy (motion energy) in the capacitor.
Chemical energy in the battery is converted into electrostatic potential energy in the capacitor.
Chemical energy in the battery is converted into kinetic energy (motion energy) in the capacitor.

Details
Performance
NGSS

Topic: Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation
Correct Answer: C
Misconceptions

Distribution of Responses

Chart showing distrubtion of responses for Item EG206001

Scale Score for Item Difficulty (200[Easy]-800[Difficult]): 501

Students Responding Correctly

Group	Correct	Total	Percent
Overall	1589	3858	41%
Grades
4–5	N/A	N/A	N/A
6–8	789	2056	38%
9–12	800	1802	44%
Gender
Male	779	1828	43%
Female	775	1943	40%
Primary Language
English	1447	3451	42%
Other	110	306	36%

View data table

Disciplinary Core Ideas: PS1.B Some chemical reactions release energy, others store energy.
PS3.C When two objects interacting through a field change relative position, the energy stored in the field is changed.

Science Assessment

Item RG206001: When a battery is connected to a capacitor in a closed circuit, chemical energy in the battery is converted into electrostatic potential energy in the capacitor.