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Magnetism Last

1) Domestic electric circuits receive alternating current (AC) at 220V with a frequency of 50Hz through a main supply. 2) Circuits use a three-core wiring system with a live wire (red insulation), a neutral wire (black insulation), and an earth wire (green insulation). 3) Common faults include short circuits caused by live and neutral wires touching, and overloading circuits by connecting too many appliances to a single socket. Fuses and earth wires are safety measures used to prevent damage from faults.

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76 views5 pages

Magnetism Last

1) Domestic electric circuits receive alternating current (AC) at 220V with a frequency of 50Hz through a main supply. 2) Circuits use a three-core wiring system with a live wire (red insulation), a neutral wire (black insulation), and an earth wire (green insulation). 3) Common faults include short circuits caused by live and neutral wires touching, and overloading circuits by connecting too many appliances to a single socket. Fuses and earth wires are safety measures used to prevent damage from faults.

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13.

7 DOMESTIC ELECTRIC CIRCUITS:


 Alternating current (A.C.) :

 An electric current whose magnitude changes with time and direction


reverses periodically is called alternating current or A current, which
changes direction after equal intervals of time, is called an alternating
current (abbreviated as AC).
 In India, most of the power stations generate alternate current. The direction
of current changes after every 1/100 second in India. i.e.,
Frequency = 1/ Time period
= 1/50 Hz
[The frequency of AC in India is 50 Hz.]
 AC can be transmitted over long distances without much loss of energy.

 Direct current (D.C.) :

 An electric current whose magnitude is either constant or variable but the


direction of flow in a conductor remains the same is called direct current or a
current which does not change its direction with time.
 Source of DC are cell, battery, and storage cells.
 DC can be stored.
 Loss of energy during transmission over long distance is high.
 Difference between AC and DC:

Basis of AC DC
Comparison

Definition In AC, the The direction of


direction of the the current remains
current keeps the same in DC.
reversing
periodically.

Frequency 50 or 60 Hz Zero

Polarity AC has a It does not have


polarity (+, -) Polarity
The direction of The direction In DC, the flowing
flowing electrons of flow of electrons are
electrons in AC unidirectional
is bidirectional

Attained from Alternators or DC Generators,


AC generators battery, solar cell
and more.
Purpose Used in Used in
factories, electroplating,
industries, electrolysis,
households electronic
equipment, and
more
 Domestic electric circuits:

 In our homes, we receive supply of electric power through a main supply (also
called mains), either supported through overhead electric poles or by
underground cables.We receive AC electric power of 220 V with a frequency
of 50 Hz in our houses.
 Domestic wiring:
 The electricity from the mains is supplied to the houses using a three-core
wiring called the ‘live’, the neutral and the earth.
 The live wire (or positive) usually with red insulation cover brings in the
current.
 The neutral wire (or negative) with black insulation is the return wire.
 The potential difference between live and neutral wire in India is 220V.
 The green earth wire is connected to a metal plate deep in the earth. It is a
safety measure and does not affect the supply in any way.
 An electric circuit consists of three main wiring components:
(i) Live wire (positive) with red insulation cover.
(ii) Neutral wire (negative) with black insulation cover.
(iii) Earth wire with green insulation cover. It protects us from electric shock in
case of leakage of current especially in metallic body appliances. It provides a
low resistance path for current in case of leakage of current.
 Mnemonics:
Concept: Electrical wiring
Mnemonics: Rare Lawn Beautiful Nature Green Earth Interpretation: Red:
Live; Black: Neutral; Green: Earth
 At the meter-board in the house, these wires pass into an electricity meter
through a main fuse. Through the main switch they are connected to the line
wires in the house. These wires supply electricity to separate circuits within the
house. Often, two separate circuits are used, one of 15 A current rating for
appliances with higher power ratings such as geysers, air coolers, etc. The other
circuit is of 5 A current rating for bulbs, fans, etc.
 The earth wire, which has insulation of green colour, is usually connected to a
metal plate deep in the earth near the house. This is used as a safety measure,
especially for those appliances that have a metallic body, for example, electric
press, toaster, table fan, refrigerator, etc. The metallic body is connected to the
earth wire, which provides a low-resistance conducting path for the current.
Thus, it ensures that any leakage of current to the metallic body of the
appliance keeps its potential to that of the earth, and the user may not get a
severe electric shock.
 Earthing: Earthing of an electrical appliance means connecting the metaliic
body of the powered appliance to the earth through the earth wire. It is a safety
measure which ensures any leakage of current to the metallic body of the
appliance keep its potential equal to the that of the earth (zero volt) and the user
may not get a severe electric shock.
 Faults and Safety Measures in Domestic Electric circuit:

Faults:
(i) Short Circuiting :
 It is caused by touching of live wire and neutral wire either directly or
via conducting wire due to defective or damage wiring. The resistance of
the circuit becomes almost zero and an extremely large current flows
through the circuit.
 Appliances can be protected from short circuiting by using an electric
fuse in live wire.

(ii) Overloading of an electric circuit :


 The overheating of electrical wire in any circuit due to flow of a large
current through it is called overloading of the electrical circuit.
 Overloading can occur when the live wire and the neutral wire come
into direct contact. (This occurs when the insulation of wires is damaged
or there is a fault in the appliance.) In such a situation, the current in the
circuit abruptly increases. This is called short-circuiting.
 Overloading can also occur due to an accidental hike in the supply
voltage, when the current drawn from the mains exceeds the safety limit
(5A for domestic line and 15A for power line). Sometimes overloading
is caused by connecting too many appliances to a single socket.
 A circuit can be protected from overloading by using an electric fuse.

Safety Measures:
(i) Electric fuse :
 It is a protective device which is used for protecting the circuit from
short-circuiting and overloading.
 It is a piece of thin wire of material having a low melting and high
resistance.
 Fuse is always connected in series to live wire and works on the
principal of heating effect.
 The use of an electric fuse prevents the electric circuit and the
appliance from a possible damage by stopping the flow of unduly high
electric current.
 The Joule heating that takes place in the fuse melts it to break the
electric circuit.
 Fuse wire is made of pure tin or tin-copper alloy.
(ii) Earth wire :
 The metallic body of electric appliances is connected to the Earth by
means of earth wire so that any leakage of electric current is
transferred to the ground. This prevents any electric shock to the user.
 A schematic diagram of one of the common domestic circuits:

 In each separate circuit, different appliances can be connected across the live
and neutral wires. Each appliance has a separate switch to ‘ON’/‘OFF’ the
flow of current through it. In order that each appliance has equal potential
difference, they are connected parallel to each other.

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