EEEB113 : CIRCUIT ANALYSIS 1

CHAPTER 1: BASIC CONCEPTS

1.1 Introduction

2 fundamental theories in building all branches of electrical engineering;
(i) electric circuit theory
(ii) electromagnetic theory
What is electric circuit?
An electric circuit is an interconnection of electric elements (i.e battery, wires, lamp).
Examples : Figure 1.1 (simple circuit), Figure 1.2 (complicated circuit).

1.2 Systems of units

International system of units (SI) is used to represent all measurable quantities
Basic SI units is shown in Table 1.1

Table 1.1 Basic SI units
Quantity Basic Unit Symbol
Length meter m
Mass kilogram kg
Time second s
Electric current ampere A
Thermodynamic temperature kelvin K
Luminous intensity candela cd
Prefixes is used to represent larger or smaller SI unit based on the power of 10
The SI prefixes and their symbols are shown in Table 1.2

Table 1.2 Prefixes
Multiplier Prefix Symbol Multiplier Prefix Symbol
10
18
exa E

10
-1
deci da
10
15
peta P

10
-2
centi c
10
12
tera T

10
-3
mili m
10
9
giga G

10
-6
micro
10
6
mega M

10
-9
nano n
10
3
kilo k

10
-12
pico p
10
2
hecto h

10
-15
femto f
10 deka da 10
-18
atto a


1.3 Charge & current

Electric charge is the most basic quantity in electrical circuit.
What is electric charge?
Charge, q is an electrical property of the atomic particles of which substance consists, is
measures in coulombs, C.
All substances are made of atoms.
Each atom consists of;
Electron: carries negative charge (-1.602 x 10
-19
C)
Proton: carries positive charge (+1.602 x 10
-19
C)
Neuron: neutrally charge
Law of conservation of charge states that charge cannot be create or destroyed.
Electric current, i is the rate of change of charge, measured in ampere (A).
dt
dq
i =

=
t
t
dt i Q
0

1 ampere = 1 coulomb/second
2 types of current
Direct current (dc) : current that remains constant with time
Alternating current (ac) : current that varies sinusoidally with time





Practice Problem 1.1 (textbook)
Calculate the amount of charge represented by 2 x 10
6
protons.

Solution:
No. charge = No. of protons x No. of charge in each proton
= ( ) ( )
19 6
10 602 . 1 10 2

+
=
13
10 204 . 3

+

Practice Problem 1.2 (textbook)
If ( )
t
e q
2
10 10

= mC, find the current at t=0.5s.
I
t
0
i
t
0
ac dc

Solution:
( ) [ ]
3 2 3 2
10 20 10 10 10

= = =
t t
e e
dt
d
dt
dq
i A =
t
e
2
20

mA

At t=0.5s,
) 5 . 0 ( 2 2
20 20

= = e e i
t
36 . 7 = mA

Practice Problem 1.3 (textbook)
The current flowing through an element is

=
, 2
, 2
2
A t
A
i
1
1 0
>
< <
t
t

Calculate the charge entering the element from t=0 to t=2 s.

Solution:
[ ] =
(

+ = + = =
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=

2
1
3 1
0
2
1
2
1
0
3
2
2 2 2
0
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t t dt t dt dt i Q 667 . 6 C

1.4 Voltage

Electromotive force known as voltage or potential difference is required to move electron in
a particular direction
The voltage between point A and B, vab is equal to the energy a unit charge from a to b, ane
measured in volt.
dq
dw
v
ab
=
1 volt = 1 joule/coulomb
w: energy in joules (J)
q : is charge in coulomb (C)







+
a
-
b
vab
vab can have positive or negative value,
+ve when point a has higher potential than point b

-ve when point a has lower potential than point b
Example 1





Example 2





1.5 Power & Energy

Power is defined as the time rate of expending or absorbing energy, measured in watts (W)

vi
dt
dq
dq
dw
dt
dw
p = = =
Power is a time varying quantity and is called instantaneous power.
The power absorbed or supplied by an element is equal to the product of voltage across the
element and the current that flows through it.
Power can be positive or negative,
+ve : power is being delivered to or absorbed by an element
-ve : power is being supplied by the element (source)
Passive sign convention,
+ve : when current enters through positive terminal (p=+vi)
-ve : when current enters through negative terminal (p=-vi)
Law of conservation of energy
+ power absorbed = - power supplied
Practice Problem 1.4 (textbook)
To move charge q from point a to point b requires -30J. Find the voltage drop vab if q=2C.

+
a
-
b
-
a
+
b
9 V
-9 V =
+
a
-
b
-
a
+
b
-9 V
9 V =
Solution:
=

=
2
30
q
w
v
ab
V 15


Practice Problem 1.5 (textbook)
Find the power delivered to the element at t=5 ms if the current entering its positive
terminal is
( )A 60 cos 5 t i =
and the voltage is
V dt 5 10
0
|
|

\
|
+ =

t
i v
Solution:
vi p + =

( ) ( )
t
t t
t t i v
0 0 0
60 sin
60
1
25 10 d 60 cos 5 5 10 dt 5 10
(

+ = + =
|
|

\
|
+ =

( ) t v

60 sin
60
25
10 + =

At t=5 ms,
( ) [ ] V 107 . 10 10 5 60 sin
60
25
10
3
= + =

v
( ) [ ] A 939 . 2 10 5 60 cos 5
3
= =

i

= + = + = 939 . 2 107 . 10 vi p W 7 . 29


Practice Problem 1.6 (textbook)
A stove element draws 15 A when connected to a 120 V line. How long does it take to
consume 30 kJ?

Solution:

t
w
p

=
t
w
vi

=


t

=
3
10 30
15 120

= t s 667 . 16


1.6 Circuit Elements

2 types of circuit elements,
Passive : does not able to generate energy (eg. Resistor, capacitor, inductor)
Active : capable of generating energy (eg. Generator, battery)
Voltage and current source are the most important active elements.
2 types of source,
Ideal independent source : active element that provides voltage or current that is
completely independent of other circuit element




Independent voltage source Independent current source
Ideal dependent source : active element that provides voltage or current that is
controlled by another voltage or current




Dependent voltage source Dependent current source
Dependent source is useful in modeling transistors, op-amp and integrated circuits
Practice Problem 1.7 (textbook)
Compute the power absorbed or supplied by each component of the circuit.








+
-
v
+
V
-
v
+
-


i
i
P1
+
-
5 V
+ -
2 V
8 A
P2
+
-
P3 0.6I
3 A
I=5 A
+
-
3 V P4
Solution:
P1 : current enters through negative terminal P1 = - vi = - 5(8) = -40 W supplied power
P2 : current enters through positive terminal P2 = + vi = + 2 (8) = + 16 W
P3 : current enters through positive terminal P3 = + vi = + (0.6 x 5)(3) = + 9 W absorbed
P4 : current enters through positive terminal P4 = + vi = + 3(5) = + 15 W power

Using law of conservation of energy,
+ power absorbed = - power supplied
+ ( 16 + 9 + 15 ) W = - (-40) W