Santos, Jean Kelcy H.

April 13, 2021

BSECE – 2A

Experiment No. 1
Comparing RMS Value and Peak Value of AC Circuits
Objectives: To prove that the peak ac waveform is the same as the dc rms value.

Procedure:

1. Connect a 24 V AC supply to a small lamp. Attach two switches to the lead, to
act as a home-made two-way switch.

Figure 1.1. 24V function generator connected to a lamp and SPDT switch

2. Connect two 24 V dry cell battery and a rheostat to the lamp. The two-way switch
gives a choice between the two supplies. Adjust the rheostat so that, with the DC
supply, the lamp glows on the same brightness as with the AC supply.

Figure 1.2. Additional 48V DC source connected to the lamp and potentiometer
3. Connect leads also from the lamp to the y-input of the oscilloscope with the time-
base on.

Figure 1.3. Oscilloscope connected to the circuit

4. Switch to and fro between the two supplies, to make the comparison. With DC
you will see the trace deflected upward (or down); with AC you will see the
waveform. Are the AC waveform peaks higher than the steady DC voltage?

Figure 1.4. Graph of DC circuit in the oscilloscope with the DC voltage

 Figure 1.5. Graph of AC circuit in the oscilloscope with the peak voltage

Answer: Yes, the AC waveform peaks of 34.941V are higher than that of the
steady DC voltage with 24.108V.

5. Switch off the time-base of the oscilloscope, and center the spot. In the DC case
the spot will be deflected a definite amount. In the AC case, a line is obtained,
the length of which is 1/√2 times the deflection of the spot in the DC.

Figure 1.6. Graph of DC circuit in the oscilloscope with the DC voltage

 Figure 1.7. Graph of AC circuit in the oscilloscope with 1/√2 times the DC value

Questions:
1. Measure the peak voltage from the zero axis of the ac source, measure the dc
peak voltage.
The peak voltage from the zero axis of the AC source is 34.941V whilst the DC
peak voltage is measured as 24.108V.

2. Does the lamp glow in the same brightness when the AC peak value is 1/√2?
Why?
Yes, the lamp, when connected to the DC portion of the circuit glows in the same
brightness when the AC peak value is 1/√2 of its initial value. This shows that the
AC voltage source dissipates the same amount of power as the DC voltage to
the lamp. This is because the RMS value is an effective value that tells you how
many volts or amps of DC that a time-varying sinusoidal waveform is equal to in
terms of its ability to produce the same power.

3. Give the value of the rheostat wherein the lamp will have the same glow.
Considering the simulation wherein 52% of the 200Ω resistance was used to
regulate the voltage, the value used to achieve same level of power with the AC
Vrms is 104Ω.
4. Measure the current in DC source and in the AC source.

Figure 1.8. Graph of DC circuit in the oscilloscope with the current

Figure 1.9. Graph of AC circuit in the oscilloscope with the maximum current

The current in the DC source is 229.959mA while the current in the AC portion of
the circuit is 229.592 which is quite close. This discrepancy is caused by the
limited range of values provided by the Multisim in its potentiometer.

5. In conclusion summarize your observation.

When dealing with alternating voltages (or currents), we must consider how to
represent the magnitude of a voltage or signal. One common way is to use the
effective value, which is also known as the Root Mean Square value or simply
the RMS value. In theory, it is believed that the RMS values of an AC source are
considered as the equivalent of the values of a DC source.

In this experiment, we made use of a lamp and an oscillator to prove the theory
qualitatively and quantitatively. By switching the sources, we can see that they
have different power dissipation. But when the AC source was switched with its
voltage divided by √2, the lamp’s brightness became almost equal for the two
sources. In quantitative terms, this was proved when currents of both the sources
were measured in question number 4 which showed little to no difference. This
just proved the value of the peak voltage and current of an AC source when
divided by √2 has become a near equivalent of the DC source with very few
discrepancies.

In conclusion, this experiment shows that the ratio of the RMS value of voltage to
the maximum value of voltage is the same as the ratio of the RMS value of
current to the maximum value of current. It was able to demonstrate the
equivalence of the AC RMS values and the DC values both by simulation and
solving for the theoretical values. This can easily be confirmed in the figures and
tables of values provided in this experiment.