1

AC CIRCUITS

Robertson A. Laban
Mathematics and Physics Department
Adamson University
-Y and Y- Conversions 2
 3
It is possible to calculate the proper values of
resistors necessary to form one kind of network
( or Y) that behaves identically to the other
kind, as analyzed from the terminal
connections alone.
A prime application for -Y conversion is 4
in the solution of unbalanced bridge
circuits, such as the one below:
If the charges move around the circuit in the same direction at all times,
the current is said to be direct current (dc).

If the charges move first one way and then the opposite way, the current is
said to be alternating current (ac).
Conventional current is the hypothetical flow of positive charges that would
have the same effect in the circuit as the movement of negative charges that
actually does occur.
In an AC circuit, the charge flow reverses direction periodically.
Sinusoidal Currents and 9

Voltage
An ac source is any device that supplies a
sinusoidally varying voltage (potential difference) v
or current i.
A power supply can be set to give an EMF of form:

(t ) 0 sin t

This EMF is time dependent, has an amplitude 0, and

varies with angular frequency .
 2f 10

angular frequency in
frequency
cycles/sec or Hz
in rads/sec

The current in a resistor is still given by Ohms Law:

(t ) 0
I (t ) sin t I 0 sin t
R R

The current has an amplitude of I0=0/R.

 11

The instantaneous power dissipated in a resistor will be:

P I (t )VR (t )
I 0 sin t 0 sin t I 0 0 sin 2 t

The power dissipated depends on t (where in the cycle the

current/voltage are).
 12

What is the average power dissipated by a resistor in one

cycle?

The average value sin2t over one cycle is 1/2.

1
The average power is Pav I 0 0 .
2
What are the averages of V(t) and I(t) over one cycle? 13

The problem here is that the average value of sin t over

one complete cycle is zero! This is not a useful way to
characterize the quantities V(t) and I(t).

To fix this problem we use the root mean square (rms) as

the characteristic value over one cycle.

I0 0
I rms and rms
2 2
 14

In terms of rms quantities, the power dissipated by a resistor

can be written as:

1 I0 0
Pav I 0 0
2 2 2
rms
2
I rms rms I rms
2
R
R
Example :A circuit breaker trips when the rms current
15
exceeds 20.0 A. How many 100.0 W light bulbs can run on
this circuit without tripping the breaker? (The voltage is 120 V
rms.)

Each light bulb draws a current given by:

Pav I rms rms

100 Watts I rms 120 V
I rms 0.83 Amps

If 20 amps is the maximum current, and 0.83 amps is the

current drawn per light bulb, then you can run 24 light bulbs
without tripping the breaker.
Example: A hair dryer has a power rating of 1200 W at 120 V
16
rms. Assume the hair dryer is the only resistance in the
circuit.

(a) What is the resistance of the heating element?

2 rms
Pav
R

1200 Watts
120 V
2

R
R 12
Example continued:
17

(b) What is the rms current drawn by the hair dryer?

Pav I rms rms

1200 Watts I rms 120 V
I rms 10 Amps

(c) What is the maximum instantaneous power that the

resistance must withstand?
1
P I 0 0 sin t Pmax I 0 0
2
Pav I 0 0
2
Pmax = 2Pav = 2400 Watts
Capacitors, Resistors and 18

Inductors in AC circuits

For a capacitor: Q(t ) CVC (t )

Q(t ) VC (t )
In the circuit: I (t ) C
t t

Slope of the
plot V(t) vs. t
19
 20
The current in the circuit and the voltage drop across the
capacitor are 1/4 cycle out of phase. Here the current leads
the voltage by 1/4 cycle.

Here it is true that VCI. The equality is Vc = IXC where XC

is called capacitive reactance. (Think Ohms Law!)

1 Reactance has
XC
C units of ohms.
 21

For a resistor in an AC circuit, V (t ) I (t ) R.

The voltage and current will be in phase with each other.

 22

For an inductor in an AC circuit:

I (t )
VL L
t Slope of an
I(t) vs. t plot

Also, VL = IXL where the inductive reactance is:

X L L
 23

The current in the circuit and the voltage drop across the
inductor are 1/4 cycle out of phase. Here the current lags
the voltage by 1/4 cycle.
Plot of I(t), V(t), and P(t) for a capacitor. 24

The average power over one cycle is zero.

An ideal capacitor dissipates no energy.
 25

A similar result is found for inductors; no energy is dissipated

by an ideal inductor.
Series RLC Circuits 26
To find the amplitude (0) and phase () of the total voltage
27
we add VL, VR, and VC together by using phasors.

0 V VL VC
R
2 2

VL IR IX L IX C
2 2

0
I R X L X C
2 2

X
IZ
VR
VC
Z is called impedance.
 y
The phase angle between the28
current in the circuit and the input
voltage is:
VL
0 VL VC X L X C
tan

VR R
VR X VR R
cos
VC 0 Z
Example (text problem 21.79): In an RLC circuit these three
elements are connected in series: a resistor of 20.0 , a 2935.0
mH inductor, and a 50.0 F capacitor. The AC source has an
rms voltage of 100.0 V and an angular frequency of 1.0103
rad/sec. Find

(a) The reactances of the capacitor and the inductor.

X L L 35.0
1
XC 20.0
C
(b) The impedance.

Z R X L X C 25.0
2 2
Example continued:
30

(c) The rms current:

rms I rms Z
rms 100.0 V
I rms 4.00 Amps
Z 25.0

(d) The current amplitude:

I0
I rms
2
I 0 2 I rms 5.66 Amps
Example continued:
31

(e) The phase angle:

X L X C 35 20
tan 0.75
R 20
tan 1 0.75 0.644 rads (Or 37)

(f) The rms voltages across each circuit element:

Vrms , R I rms R 80.0 V

Vrms , L I rms X L 140 V
Vrms ,C I rms X C 80.0 V
 32

The power dissipated by a resistor is:

Pav I rms rms, R I rms rms cos

where cos is called the power factor

Resonance in RLC Circuits 33

A plot of I vs.
for a series
RLC circuit
has a peak at
= 0.
The peak occurs at the resonant frequency for the circuit.
34

I
Z R2 X L X C
2

The current will be a maximum when Z is a minimum. This

occurs when XL = XC (or when Z=R).

X L XC
1
0 L
0C
1 This is the resonance
0
LC frequency for the circuit.
 X L XC
35

tan 0
At resonance: R
R
cos 1
R

The phase angle is 0; the voltage and the current are in

phase. The current in the circuit is a maximum as is the
power dissipated by the resistor.
 Converting AC to DC; Filters 36

A diode is a circuit element that allows current to pass

through in one direction, but not the other.
 37

The plot shows the voltage drop across the

resistor. During half a cycle, it is zero.

Putting a capacitor in the circuit smoothes out VR,

producing a nearly constant voltage drop (a DC voltage).
A capacitor may be used as a filter. 38

Low-pass filter. When

XC << R ( is large) the
output voltage will be
small compared to the
input voltage.

When XC >> R ( is small), the output voltage will be

comparable to the input voltage.

This circuit will allow low frequency signals to pass through

while filtering out high frequency signals.
 39

A high-pass filter. This will allow high frequency signals

to pass through while filtering out low frequency signals.
Key Equations
Key Equations
Key Equations