APPLIED ELECTRICITY-I

GET 225

Chapter 1: Basic Concepts

Course Instructor: Ahmad A. Galadima

1 11/3/2020
 Outline

1. Introduction

2. Systems of Units

3. Current & Charge

4. Voltage

5. Power and Energy

6. Circuit Elements

7. Summary

8. References

2 11/3/2020
 Introduction

In applied electricity, we are often interested in

communicating or transferring energy from one
point to another.
To do this requires an interconnection of electrical
devices. Such interconnection is referred to as an
electric circuit, and each component of the
circuit is known as an element.

3 11/3/2020
 What is an Electric Circuit?

An electric circuit is an interconnection of electrical

elements.

Fig 1. A Simple Circuit Fig 2. Electric circuit of a radio

receiver.

4 11/3/2020
 Systems of Units

As engineers, we deal with measurable quantities. Our

measurement, however, must be communicated in a
standard language that virtually all professionals can
understand irrespective of the country where the
measurement is conducted.

5 11/3/2020
 Systems of Units (Cont’d)

One great advantage of

the SI unit is that it uses
prefixes based on the
power of 10 to relate
larger and smaller units
to the basic unit

6 11/3/2020
 Charge and Current

The concept of electric charge is the underlying

principle for explaining all electrical phenomena.
Charge is an electrical property of the atomic particles of
which matter consists, measured in coulombs (C)

The charge e on an electron is negative and equal

in magnitude to 1.602 x 10-19C, while a proton
carries a positive charge of the same magnitude
as the electron.

7 11/3/2020
 Charge and Current (Cont’d)

We now consider the flow of electric charges. A unique feature

of electric charge or electricity is the fact that it is mobile; that
is, it can be transferred from one place to another

Electric current is the time rate of change of charge, measured in

amperes (A).

Mathematically, the relationship between current i, charge q,

and time t is:

Electric current due to flow of electronic charge in a conductor.

where current is measured in amperes (A)
8 11/3/2020
 Charge and Current (Cont’d)

The charge transferred between time t0 and t

is obtained by integrating both sides

If the current does not change with time, but

remains constant, we call it a direct current
(dc).
A direct current (dc) is a current that remains constant with
time
A time-varying current is represented by the
symbol i. A common form of time-varying
current is the sinusoidal current or alternating Fig 3. Direct Current (D.C)
current (ac).

An alternating current (ac) is a current that varies

sinusoidally with time.

9 11/3/2020
Fig 4. Alternating Current (A.C)
 Examples

10 11/3/2020
11 11/3/2020
12 11/3/2020
 Voltage

To move an electron in a conductor in a particular direction

requires some work or energy transfer. This work is performed
by an external electromotive force (emf), typically represented by
the battery.
Voltage (or potential difference) is the energy required to move a unit
charge through an element, measured in volts (V).
This emf is also known as voltage or potential difference. The
voltage between two points a and b in an electric circuit is the
energy (or work) needed to move a unit charge from a to b;
mathematically,

13 11/3/2020
 Voltage

The vab can be interpreted in two ways: (1) point

a is at a potential of vab volts higher than point b,
or (2) the potential at point a with respect to
point b is . It follows logically that in general

14 11/3/2020
 Power and Energy

Although current and voltage are the two basic variables in an

electric circuit, they are not sufficient by themselves. For practical
purposes, we need to know how much power an electric device can
handle.
Power is the time rate of expending or absorbing energy, measured in
watts (W).

where p is power in watts (W),

w is energy in joules (J),
and t is time in seconds (s).

15 11/3/2020
 Power and Energy

Current direction and voltage polarity play a major role in

determining the sign of power. It is therefore important that we
pay attention to the relationship between current i and voltage v

Passive sign convention is satisfied

when the current enters through the
positive terminal of an element and
p = +vi. If the current enters through
the negative terminal, p = -vi

Fig 5. Reference polarities for power using the

passive sign convention: (a) absorbing
power, (b) supplying power.
16 11/3/2020
 Power and Energy

In fact, the law of conservation of energy must be obeyed in any

electric circuit. For this reason, the algebraic sum of power in a
circuit, at any instant of time, must be zero:

The energy absorbed or supplied by an element from time to time t

is

Energy is the capacity to do work, measured in joules (J).

17 11/3/2020
 Examples

18 11/3/2020
Example

19 11/3/2020
 Circuit Elements

An element is the basic building block of a circuit.

An electric circuit is simply an interconnection of the elements.

Circuit analysis is the process of determining voltages across (or

the currents through) the elements of the circuit.

There are two types of elements found in electric circuits: passive

elements and active elements. An active element (voltage or
current sources) is capable of generating energy while a passive
element (resistors, capacitors, and inductors) is not.

20 11/3/2020
 Circuit Elements

There are two kinds of sources: independent and dependent

sources.
An ideal independent source is
an active element that provides
a specified voltage or current
that is completely independent
of other circuit elements.

Fig 6. Independent sources

An ideal dependent (or

controlled) source is an active
element in which the source
quantity is controlled by another
voltage or current.
Fig 7. Dependent sources
21 11/3/2020
 Circuit Elements

Dependent sources are usually designated by diamond-shaped

symbols, as shown in Fig 7.

Since the control of the dependent source is achieved by a voltage

or current of some other element in the circuit, and the source can
be voltage or current, it follows that there are four possible types
of dependent sources, namely:

Fig 8. The dependent source is a

current-controlled voltage source

22 11/3/2020
 Examples

23 11/3/2020
 Summary

24 11/3/2020
 Summary

25 11/3/2020
 Reference

Fundamentals of electric circuits / Charles K. Alexander, Matthew N.

O. Sadiku. — 4th ed.

26