An inductor is an electrical component that opposes any

change in electrical current. It is composed of a coil of wire

wound around a supporting core whose material may be magnetic
or nonmagnetic. The behavior of inductors is based on phenomena
associated with magnetic fields. The source of the
magnetic field is charge in motion, or current. If the current is
varying with time, the magnetic field is varying with time. A time
varying magnetic field induces a voltage in any conductor linked
by the field. The circuit parameter of inductance relates the
induced voltage to the current.

A capacitor is an electrical component that consists of two

conductors separated by an insulator or dielectric material. The
capacitor is the only device other than a battery that can store
electrical charge. The behavior of capacitors is based on
phenomena associated with electric fields. The source of the
electric field is separation of charge, or voltage. If the voltage is
varying with time, the electric field is varying with time. A time-
varying electric field produces a displacement current in the space
occupied by the field. The circuit parameter of capacitance relates
the displacement current to the voltage, where the displacement
current is equal to the conduction current at the terminals of the
capacitor.

Energy can be stored in both magnetic and electric fields. Hence

you should not be too surprised to learn that inductors and
capacitors are capable of storing energy. For example, energy can
be stored in an inductor and then released to fire a spark plug.
Energy can be stored in a capacitor and then released to fire a
flashbulb. In ideal inductors and capacitors, only as much energy
can be extracted as has been stored. Because inductors
and capacitors cannot generate energy, they are classified as
passive elements.
The Inductor
Inductance is the circuit parameter used to describe an inductor.
Inductance is symbolized by the letter L, is measured in henrys (H),
and is represented graphically as a coiled wirea reminder that
inductance is a consequence of a conductor linking a magnetic
field. Figure 6.1(a) shows an inductor.
Assigning the reference direction of the current in the direction of
the voltage drop across the terminals of the inductor, as shown in
Fig. 6.1(b), yields

where v is measured in volts, L in henrys, i in amperes, and t in

seconds.
Equation 6.1 reflects the passive sign convention shown in Fig.
6.1(b); that is, the current reference is in the direction of the
voltage drop across the inductor. If the current reference is in the
direction of the voltage rise, Eq. 6.1 is written with a minus sign.

Note from Eq. 6.1 that the voltage across the terminals of an
inductor is proportional to the time rate of change of the current in
the inductor.
We can make two important observations here. First, if the current
is constant, the voltage across the ideal inductor is zero. Thus the
inductor behaves as a short circuit in the presence of a constant, or
dc, current.
Second, current cannot change instantaneously in an inductor; that
is, the current cannot change by a finite amount in zero time.
Equation 6.1 tells us that this change would require an infinite
voltage, and infinite voltages are not possible.
For example, when someone opens the switch on an inductive
circuit in an actual system, the current initially continues to flow in
the air across the switch, a phenomenon called arcing. The arc
across the switch prevents the current from dropping to zero
instantaneously.
Switching inductive circuits is an important engineering problem,
because arcing and voltage surges must be controlled to prevent
equipment damage
The Capacitor

The circuit parameter of capacitance is represented by the letter C

is measured in farads (F), and is symbolized graphically by two short
parallel conductive plates, as shown in Fig. 6.10(a).
Because the farad is an extremely large quantity of capacitance,
practical capacitor values usually lie in the pico farad (pF) to
microfarad (/xF) range.
The graphic symbol for a capacitor is a reminder that capacitance
occurs whenever electrical conductors are separated by a
dielectric, or insulating, material. This condition implies that
electric charge is not transported through the capacitor. Although
applying a voltage to the terminals of the capacitor cannot move a
charge through the dielectric, it can displace a charge within the
dielectric.
As the voltage varies with time, the displacement of charge also
varies with time, causing what is known as the displacement
current.
At the terminals, the displacement current is indistinguishable from
a conduction current.
The current is proportional to the rate at which the voltage across
the capacitor varies with time, or, mathematically.
where /' is measured in amperes, C in farads, v in volts, and t in
seconds.
Equation 6.13 reflects the passive sign convention shown in Fig.
6.10(b); that is, the current reference is in the direction of the
voltage drop across the capacitor. If the current reference is in the
direction of the voltage rise, Eq. 6.13 is written with a minus sign

Two important observations follow from Eq. 6.13. First, voltage

cannot change instantaneously across the terminals of a capacitor.
Equation 6.13 indicates that such a change would produce infinite
current, a physical impossibility.
Second, if the voltage across the terminals is constant, the
capacitor current is zero. The reason is that a conduction current
cannot be established in the dielectric material of the capacitor.
Only a time-varying voltage can produce a displacement current.
Thus a capacitor behaves as an open circuit in the presence of a
constant voltage.
1- Electrical Load Classification According To Load Nature (1)

Electrical Loads can be classified according to the nature of the

load as follows:

Resistive Electrical Loads

Capacitive Electrical Loads
Inductive Electrical Loads

1- Resistive Electrical Loads: (heaters and incandescent lights)

The Resistive Electrical Loads naturally resist the flow of electricity

through it by converting some of this electrical energy into heat
(thermal energy) , the result will be a drop in the amount of
electrical energy transferred through it.

Examples for Resistive Electrical Loads:

a- Incandescent light bulbs:

An incandescent light bulb produces light by passing an electric
current through a filament in a vacuum. The resistance of the
filament causes it to heat up and the electrical energy is converted
to light energy.

b- Electric heaters:
Electric heaters work in the same way, its resistance convert the
electrical energy to thermal energy (heat) and they may produce
little, if any, light.

Characteristics of Resistive Electrical Loads:(see fig.1)

Resistance (R) is measured in ohms.

 The electrical current and the voltage in a resistive load are
said to be "in phase" with each other. As voltage rises or falls, the
current also rises and falls with it.
As the voltage and current are in phase, the power factor is in
unity.
Resistive loads not having any significant inrush current. When
a resistive load is energized, the current rises instantly to its
steady-state value, without first rising to a higher value.

fig (1): Characteristics of Resistive Electrical Loads

2- Capacitive Electrical Loads (Capacitors, wiring, cable)

A capacitor stores electrical energy. Two conductive surfaces are

separated by a non-conductive insulator.

When an electrical current is applied to a capacitor, electrons from

the current gather on the plate attached to the terminal to which
the electric current is applied. When the current is removed, the
electrons will to flow back through the circuit to reach the other
terminal of the capacitor.

Examples for Capacitive Electrical Loads:

Capacitors are used in electric motors, radio circuits, power
supplies and many other circuits.

Characteristics of Capacitive Electrical Loads: (see fig.2)

The capability of a capacitor to store electrical energy is

called capacitance (C). The main unit of measure is the farad, but
most capacitors are measured in microfarads.
The current leads the voltage of a capacitor. The voltage
across the terminals starts out at zero volts while the current is at
its maximum. As the charge builds on the capacitors plate, the
voltage rises and the current falls. As a capacitor discharges, the
current rises as the voltage falls.
The current waveform is leading the voltage waveform;
therefore, the voltage peaks and current peaks are not in phase.
The amount of phase delay is given by the cosine of the angel (Cos)
between the vectors representing voltage and current.

fig (2): Characteristics of Capacitive Electrical Loads

3- Inductive Electrical Loads (Motors and transformers)

An inductor may be any conductive material. When a changing

current passes through an inductor, it induces a magnetic field
around itself. Turning the inductor into a coil increases the
magnetic field. A similar principal occurs when a conductor is
placed within a changing magnetic field. The magnetic field induces
an electrical current within the conductor.

Examples for Inductive Electrical Loads:

Examples of inductive loads include transformers, electric motors

and coils. Two sets of magnetic fields in an electric motor oppose
each other, forcing the motor's shaft to spin.

A transformer has two inductors, a primary and a secondary. The

magnetic field in the primary winding induces an electric current in
the secondary winding.

A coil stores energy in the magnetic field it induces when a

changing current passes through it and releases the energy when
the current is removed.

Characteristics of Inductive Electrical Loads: (see fig.3)

Inductance (L) is measured in henries.

The changing voltage and current in an inductor are out of
phase. As current rises to a maximum, the voltage falls.
The current waveform is lagging behind the voltage waveform,
therefore, the voltage peaks and current peaks are not in phase.
The amount of phase delay is given by the cosine of the angel (Cos)
between the vectors representing voltage and current.
Inductive load pulls a large amount of current (an inrush
current) when first energized. After a few cycles or seconds the
current "settles down" to the full-load running current.
The time required for the current to "settle down" depends on
the frequency or/and the inductance value of the Inductive load.
 fig (3): Characteristics of Inductive Electrical Loads

A capacitor and inductor will cause a 90 degree phase shift between

voltage and current (fig. 4). The resulting power will have a value
of zero every time the voltage or current has a zero value since the
two quantities are multiplied to get power (fig. 5). This is not a
desirable model because although the source is generating power,
no work is being done at the load. This type of power is known as
reactive power because it counteracts the effects of true power.
Reactive power is the lazy brother of true power. True power is
doing all the work while reactive power is actually taking away from
the power in the system making the true power work harder to get
the job done. It is measured in what is known as reactive volt-amps
(VAr). A capacitive load will introduce negative reactive power and
the voltage lags the current waveform by 90 (fig. 6). An
inductive load will introduce positive reactive power and the
voltage leads the current waveform by 90 (fig. 7). This is
because capacitors generate reactive power and inductors
consume reactive power.