Pearson Edexcel International GCSE in Physics · 4PH1 · Free · no account needed
Mains Electricity and Safety — exam questions
12 original Incandio exam-style questions on Mains Electricity and Safety, 26 marks, about 26 minutes of writing. Each one carries the command word, the tariff and the specification statement it assesses, exactly as a paper presents them. This is an original Incandio practice question, written to reflect the structure and demands of the qualification. It is not an official Pearson Edexcel past-paper question.
This is the practice set for Mains Electricity and Safety — the lesson that teaches it. Read the lesson first if the idea is new; come here when you want to find out whether you can turn it into marks. Completely free, no account needed to read.
What these questions ask of you
7 command words run through this set, and on Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics each one means something precise. Answering the wrong command is the commonest way a candidate who understands the lesson still loses the mark.
- Which (1 mark)
- one option chosen from the set given
- Name (1 mark)
- the correct quantity, unit or component
- State what is meant by (1–2 marks)
- the definition
- Describe (2–4 marks)
- developed, linked statements of what happens — including a named direction where one exists
- Explain (2–4 marks)
- the physics that causes it, set out as a line of reasoning Misread as: describing the change without giving the physical reason for it
- Suggest (1–3 marks)
- a plausible answer applying taught physics to an unfamiliar arrangement
- Complete (1–4 marks)
- the missing entries in a table, circuit or diagram
Assessed on Paper 1 (4PH1/1P) and Paper 2 (4PH1/2P), against AO1, AO2, AO3.
Where these sit in the specification
Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics (4PH1) — statements 2.6 · 2.2. Incandio is aligned to this specification; it is not published by, endorsed by or affiliated with Pearson, and it reproduces none of Pearson's wording.
The 12 questions
Answer them on paper, then open the lesson's exam practice to have them marked. The mark scheme, the accepted and rejected answers and the annotated model answer are in Incandio and are not printed here — an answer beside its question is not practice.
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Table 1 — four safety features and what each protects Feature How it works What it protects insulation a non-conducting covering over the live wire the user earthing a low-resistance path from the metal case to earth the user fuse a thin wire that melts if the current is too large the flex and appliance circuit breaker a switch that trips if the current is too large to be found (a)
(1)Complete
Complete Table 1 by giving what a circuit breaker protects.
Table 1 — four safety features and what each protects Feature How it works What it protects insulation a non-conducting covering over the live wire the user earthing a low-resistance path from the metal case to earth the user fuse a thin wire that melts if the current is too large the flex and appliance circuit breaker a switch that trips if the current is too large to be found (b)
(2)Explain
Explain what the last column of Table 1 shows about how the four features divide.
Table 1 — four safety features and what each protects Feature How it works What it protects insulation a non-conducting covering over the live wire the user earthing a low-resistance path from the metal case to earth the user fuse a thin wire that melts if the current is too large the flex and appliance circuit breaker a switch that trips if the current is too large to be found (c)
(3)Explain
Explain why the earth wire in Table 1 carries no current when the appliance is working normally.
Table 1 — four safety features and what each protects Feature How it works What it protects insulation a non-conducting covering over the live wire the user earthing a low-resistance path from the metal case to earth the user fuse a thin wire that melts if the current is too large the flex and appliance circuit breaker a switch that trips if the current is too large to be found (d)
(3)Suggest
Suggest why an appliance with a plastic case may still be fitted with a fuse, even though Table 1 shows insulation already protects the user.
Table 1 — four safety features and what each protects Feature How it works What it protects insulation a non-conducting covering over the live wire the user earthing a low-resistance path from the metal case to earth the user fuse a thin wire that melts if the current is too large the flex and appliance circuit breaker a switch that trips if the current is too large to be found (Total for Question 1 = 9 marks)
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(1)Which
Which describes the current supplied by a cell?
Description A it reverses direction fifty times a second B it always flows in the same direction C it flows only when the appliance is hot D it has no direction (Total for Question 2 = 1 mark)
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(1)Name
Name the wire that carries a fault current safely away from the metal case of an appliance.
(Total for Question 3 = 1 mark)
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(1)State what is meant by
State what is meant by a double-insulated appliance.
(Total for Question 4 = 1 mark)
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(2)Describe
Describe the difference between alternating current and direct current.
(Total for Question 5 = 2 marks)
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(3)Explain
Explain how earthing and a fuse work together to protect a user from a metal-cased appliance with a fault.
(Total for Question 6 = 3 marks)
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(2)Explain
Explain why a double-insulated appliance does not need an earth wire.
(Total for Question 7 = 2 marks)
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(3)Suggest
Suggest why a circuit breaker is often preferred to a fuse in a modern house.
Circuit breakers — A circuit breaker is an automatic switch that opens when the current through it exceeds its rating. Once the fault has been dealt with it can be reset by hand. A fuse contains a thin wire that melts, and must be replaced after it blows.
(Total for Question 8 = 3 marks)
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(4)Explain
Explain how an earth wire and a fuse work together to make an appliance with a metal case safe.
(Total for Question 9 = 4 marks)
Have them marked, then defend the answer
Practice tells you the mark; teaching it back tells you whether you understand it. On Incandio a topic counts as mastered only once you have taught it and defended it.
- Mark these questions — 12 questions, marked on Incandio against the authored scheme, with the mistake you actually made named.
- Teach it — explain Mains Electricity and Safety to Ember, an AI pupil who does not have it yet and asks the awkward question.
- Defend it — argue it against Nikola Tesla over three rounds, marked against descriptors you can read first.
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Back to the lesson
- Mains Electricity and Safety — What is different about the electricity in a wall socket, and the four things that stand between it and you.
- All of Incandio Physics · Incandio Exam Practice