Basic electrical concepts and terms - current, voltage,

resistance, power, charge, efficiency.

 Electrical voltage.
 Electrical current.
 Electrical resistance.
 Electric power.
 Electric charge.
 Power efficiency.

1. In this dc circuit, the switch is closed (turned ON).

2. Voltage in the power source—the "potential difference" between the
battery's two poles—is activated, creating pressure that forces
electrons to flow as current out the battery's negative terminal.
3. Current reaches the light, causing it to glow.
4. Current returns to the power source.
5. Voltage is either alternating current (ac) voltage or direct current (dc)
voltage. Ways they differ:
6. Alternating current voltage (represented on a digital multimeter by
):
 7. Flows in evenly undulating since waves, as shown below:

1. Reverses direction at regular intervals.

2. Commonly produced by utilities via generators, where mechanical
energy—rotating motion powered by flowing water, steam, wind or heat
—is converted to electrical energy.
3. More common than dc voltage. Utilities deliver ac voltage to homes and
businesses where the majority of devices use ac voltage.
4. Primary voltage supplies vary by nation. In the United States, for
example, it's 120 volts.
5. Some household devices, such as TVs and computers, utilize dc
voltage power. They use rectifiers (such as that chunky block in a
laptop compu ter's cord) to convert ac voltage and current to dc.

Generators convert rotating motion into electricity. The rotary motion is

commonly caused by flowing water (hydroelectric power) or steam from water
heated by gas, oil, coal or nuclear power.
Direct current voltage (represented on a digital multimeter by and ):

1. Travels in a straight line, and in one direction only.

2. Commonly produced by sources of stored energy such as batteries.
3. Sources of dc voltage have positive and negative terminals. Terminals
establish polarity in a circuit, and polarity can be used to determine if a
circuit is dc or ac.
4. Commonly used in battery-powered portable equipment (autos,
flashlights, cameras).

What is potential difference?

Voltage and the term "potential difference" are often used interchangeably.
Potential difference might be better defined as the potential energy difference
between two points in a circuit. The amount of difference (expressed in volts)
determines how much potential energy exists to move electrons from one
specific point to another. The quantity identifies how much work, potentially,
can be done through the circuit.

A household AA alkaline battery, for example, offers 1.5 V. Typical household

electrical outlets offer 120 V. The greater the voltage in a circuit, the greater its
ability to "push" more electrons and do work.

Voltage/potential difference can be compared to water stored in a tank. The

larger the tank, and the greater its height (and thus its potential velocity), the
greater the water's capacity to create an impact when a valve is opened and the
water (like electrons) can flow.

Why measuring voltage is useful

Technicians approach most troubleshooting situations knowing how a circuit
should customarily perform.

Circuits are used to deliver energy to a load—from a small device to a

household appliance to an industrial motor. Loads often carry a nameplate that
identifies their standard electrical reference values, including voltage and
current. In place of a nameplate, some manufacturers provide a detailed
schematic (technical diagram) of a load's circuitry. Manuals may include
standard values.
These numbers tell a technician what readings to expect when a load is
operating normally. A reading on a digital multimeter can objectively identify
deviations from the norm. Even so,
the technician must use knowledge
and experience to determine the
factors causing such variances.

Electrical transmission towers

support wires that carry electricity
from power plants to homes.
(Image: © long8614 |
Shutterstock.com)

Electric current is electric charge in

motion. It can take the form of a
sudden discharge of static
electricity, such as a lightning bolt
or a spark between your finger and a
ground light switch plate. More commonly, though, when we speak of electric
current, we mean the more controlled form of electricity from generators,
batteries, solar cells or fuel cells. 

Most electric charge is carried by the electrons and protons within an atom.
Protons have positive charge, while electrons have negative charge. However,
protons are mostly immobilized inside atomic nuclei, so the job of carrying
charge from one place to another is handled by electrons. Electrons in a
conducting material such as a metal are largely free to move from one atom to
another along their conduction bands, which are the highest electron orbits. A
sufficient electromotive force (emf), or voltage, produces a charge imbalance
that can cause electrons to move through a conductor as an electric current,
according to Serif Uran, a professor of physics at Pittsburg State University. 

While it is a bit dicey to compare electric current to the flow of water in a pipe,
there are some similarities that might make it somewhat easier to understand.
We can think of the flow of electrons in a wire as the flow of water in a pipe,
according to Michael Dubson, a professor of physics at the University of
Colorado Bolder. The caveat is that, in this case, the pipe is always full of
water. If we open the valve on one end to let water into the pipe, we don't have
to wait for that water to make its way all the way to the end of the pipe. We get
water out the other end almost instantaneously because the incoming water
pushes the water that's already in the pipe toward the end. This is what
happens in the case of electrical current in a wire. The conduction electrons
are already present in the wire; we just need to start pushing electrons in one
end, and they start flowing at the other end almost immediately. 
According to the Georgia State University's HyperPhysics website, the actual
speed of an electron in a wire is on the order of a few million meters per
second, but it doesn't travel straight down the wire. It bounces around nearly
at random and only makes progress at a few millimeters per second. This is
called the electron's drift velocity. However, the transmission speed of the
signal, when electrons start being pushed out the other end of the wire after we
flip the switch, is nearly the speed of light, which is about 300 million meters
per second (186,000 miles per second). In the case of alternating current,
where the current changes direction 50 or 60 times per second, most of the
electrons never make it out of the wire.

Direct current
The next known way to create a charge
imbalance was the electro-chemical
battery, invented in 1800 by Italian
physicist Alessandro Volta for whom the
unit for electromotive force, the volt (V)
is named. His "voltaic pile" consisted of a
stack of alternating zinc and copper
plates separated by layers of cloth
soaked in salt water and produced a
steady source of direct current (DC). He
and others improved and refined his
invention over the next few decades.
According to the National Museum of
American History, "batteries attracted
the attention of many scientists and
inventors, and by the 1840s were
providing current for new electrical devices like Joseph Henry's electromagnets
and Samuel Morse's telegraph."

Other DC sources include fuel cells, which combine oxygen and hydrogen into
water, and produce electrical energy in the process. Oxygen and hydrogen can
be supplied as pure gasses or from air and a chemical fuel such as alcohol.
Another source of DC current is the photovoltaic orsolar cell. In these devices
photonic energy from sunlight is absorbed by electrons and converted into
electrical energy.
Alternating current
Most of the electricity that we
use comes in the form of
alternating current (AC) from
the electric power grid.
Alternating current is produced
by electric generators that
operate on Faraday’s Law of
Induction, by which a changing
magnetic field can induce an
electric current in a conductor.
Generators have rotating coils
of wire that pass through
magnetic fields as they turn. As
the coils rotate, they open and
close with respect to the
magnetic field and produce an
electric current that reverses
direction every half turn. The
current goes through a
complete forward-and-reverse cycle 60 times each second, or 60 hertz (Hz) (50
Hz in some countries). Generators can be powered by steam turbines heated by
coal, natural gas, oil or a nuclear reactor. They can also be powered by wind
turbines or water turbines in hydroelectric dams. 

From the generator, the current goes through a series of transformers, where it
is stepped up to a much higher voltage for transmission. The reason for this is
that the diameter of the wires determines the amount of current, or amperage,
they can carry without overheating and losing energy, but the voltage is limited
only by how well the lines are insulated from the ground. It is interesting to
note that the current is carried by only one wire and not two. The two sides of
direct current are designated as positive and negative. However, because the
polarity of AC changes 60 times per second, the two sides of alternating
current are designated as hot and ground. In long-distance power transmission
lines, the wires carry the hot side, and the ground side travels through the
Earth to complete the circuit. 

Since power equals voltage times amperage, you can send more power down
the line at the same amperage by using higher voltage. The high voltage is then
stepped down as it is distributed through a network of substations until it gets
to the transformer near your house, where it is finally stepped down to 110 V.
(In the United States, wall sockets and lights run on 110 V at 60 Hz. In Europe,
nearly everything runs on 230 V at 50 Hz.)

Once the current gets to the end of the line, most of it is used one of two ways:
either to provide heat and light through electrical resistance, or mechanical
motion through electrical induction. There are a few other applications —
fluorescent lights and microwave ovens come to mind — that operate on
different principles, but the lion's share of power goes to devices based on
resistance and/or inductance. A hair dryer, for example, uses both at the same
time. 

This brings us to an important feature of electric current: it can do work. It can

light your home, wash and dry your cloths, and even raise your garage door at
the flip of the switch. What is becoming more and more important, though, is
the ability for electric current to convey information, most notably in the form
of binary data. Although the Internet connection to your computer uses only a
tiny fraction of the electric current of, say, an electric heater, it is becoming
more and more important to modern life. 

What is Resistance?
Electrical resistance is
opposition to the flow of current
in an electric circuit: resistance
converts electrical energy to
thermal energy, and in this
regard is similar to mechanical
friction. Resistances are said to
dissipate electrical energy as
heat.
The Source of Resistance

Metals can be regarded as a

lattice of positively charged
metal ions surrounded by a 'sea' of mobile electrons that are not bound to any
particular metal nucleus. These electrons are described as occupying the
metal's conduction band.

When a potential difference - in other words a voltage - is applied to a metal in

a circuit, it causes a net movement of electrons in the metal's conduction band.

The movement of electrons is hindered by vibration of the atoms in the metal

lattice, which causes part of the electrical energy of the electric current to be
lost - this is resistance. Since lattice vibrations increase as the temperature
rises, the resistance of metals also increases as the temperature rises.

Conductors and Insulators

Electrical conductors, such as
metals, have low resistances. An
ideal conductor would have zero
resistance.

Electrical insulators have very

high resistances. An ideal
insulator would have infinite
resistance: it would dissipate
no energy, because no current
could flow through it.

Zero Resistance
At very low temperatures the
resistance of some metals and
materials fall to zero: current flows
with no dissipation of electrical
energy as heat. This phenomenon
is called superconductivity.

Ohm's Law
For many materials, electrical resistance,
R, is defined by Ohm's law:

R=V/I

where V is voltage in volts and I is

current in amps. The unit of resistance
is the ohm, symbol Ω

For example, if a voltage of 9.0 V is

applied to device and the current is
measured to be 2.0 A, then the value of
the resistance is 4.5 Ω.
Materials that obey Ohm's law are described as ohmic resistors. In general,
metals are ohmic resistors and metalloid semi-conductors are not.

Making use of Resistance

In the real world, electrical resistance can be utilized in consumer devices such
as kettles, electric toasters, and immersion heaters to convert electrical energy
to heat.

The electrical power output of a resistor is given by multiplying the (current

through it) x (the voltage across it).

P=IV

where P is power, in watts, I is current in amps, and where V is voltage in volts.

Resistance vs Impedance
The resistance of an ideal
resistor is independent of the
electricity's frequency. If the
ratio of voltage to current
changes with frequency,
then the opposition to
current is described as
impedance rather than
resistance.

Electric power

Electric power is transmitted by overhead lines

like these, and also through underground high-
voltage cables.

Electric power is the rate, per unit time, at which

electrical energy is transferred by an electric
circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt, one joule
per second.
Electric power is usually produced by electric generators, but can also be
supplied by sources such as electric batteries. It is usually supplied to
businesses and homes (as domestic mains electricity) by the electric power
industry through an electric power grid.

Electric power can be delivered over long distances by transmission lines and
used for applications such as motion, light or heat with high

Definition
Electric power, like mechanical power, is the rate of doing work, measured in
watts, and represented by the letter P. The term wattage is used colloquially to
mean "electric power in watts." The electric power in watts produced by an
electric current I consisting of a charge of Q coulombs every t seconds passing
through an electric potential (voltage) difference of V is

P = work done per unit time = V Q t = V I {\displaystyle P={\text{work done per

unit time}}={\frac {VQ}{t}}=VI\,}

where

Q is electric charge in coulombs

t is time in seconds

I is electric current in amperes

V is electric potential or voltage in volts

Electric power is transformed to other forms of energy when electric charges

move through an electric potential (voltage) difference, which occurs in
electrical components in
electric circuits. From the
standpoint of electric power,
components in an electric
circuit can be divided into two
categories:

Passive devices (loads)

When electric charges move through a potential difference from a higher to a
lower voltage, that is when conventional current (positive charge) moves from
the positive (+) terminal to the negative (−) terminal, work is done by the
charges on the device. The potential energy of the charges due to the voltage
between the terminals is converted to kinetic energy in the device. These
devices are called passive components or loads; they 'consume' electric power
from the circuit, converting it to other forms of energy such as mechanical
work, heat, light, etc. Examples are electrical appliances, such as light bulbs,
electric motors, and electric heaters. In alternating current (AC) circuits the
direction of the voltage periodically reverses, but the current always flows from
the higher potential to the lower potential side.

Active devices (power sources)

If the charges are moved by an 'exterior force' through the device in the
direction from the lower electric potential to the higher, (so positive charge
moves from the negative to the positive terminal), work will be done on the
charges, and energy is being converted to electric potential energy from some
other type of energy, such as mechanical energy or chemical energy. Devices in
which this occurs are called active devices or power sources; such as electric
generators and batteries. Some devices can be either a source or a load,
depending on the voltage and current through them. For example, a
rechargeable battery acts as a source when it provides power to a circuit, but
as a load when it is connected to a battery charger and is being recharged, or a
generator as a power source and a motor as a load.

Since electric power can flow either into or out of a component, a convention is
needed for which direction represents positive power flow. Electric power
flowing out of a circuit into a component is arbitrarily defined to have a positive
sign, while power flowing into a circuit from a component is defined to have a
negative sign. Thus passive components have positive power consumption,
while power sources have negative power consumption. This is called the
passive sign convention.
Resistive circuits

In the case of resistive (Ohmic, or linear) loads, Joule's law can be combined
with Ohm's law (V = I·R) to produce alternative expressions for the amount of
power that is dissipated:

where R is the electrical resistance.

Alternating current

In alternating current circuits,

energy storage elements such as
inductance and capacitance may
result in periodic reversals of the
direction of energy flow. The
portion of power flow that,
averaged over a complete cycle of
the AC waveform, results in net
transfer of energy in one direction
is known as real power (also
referred to as active power). That
portion of power flow due to stored
energy, that returns to the source
in each cycle, is known as reactive
power. The real power P in watts consumed by a device is given by

where

Vp is the peak voltage in volts

 Ip is the peak current in amperes
Vrms is the root-mean-square voltage in volts
Irms is the root-mean-square current in amperes
θ is the phase angle between the current and voltage sine waves

Power triangle: The components of AC power

The relationship between real power, reactive power and apparent power can
be expressed by representing the quantities as vectors. Real power is
represented as a horizontal vector and reactive power is represented as a
vertical vector. The apparent power vector is the hypotenuse of a right triangle
formed by connecting the real and reactive power vectors. This representation
is often called the power triangle. Using the Pythagorean Theorem, the
relationship among real, reactive and apparent power is:

Real and reactive powers can also be calculated directly from the apparent
power, when the current and voltage are both sinusoids with a known phase
angle θ between them:

The ratio of real power to apparent power is called power factor and is a
number always between 0 and 1. Where the currents and voltages have non-
sinusoidal forms, power factor is generalized to include the effects of distortion.
Electromagnetic fields
Electrical energy flows wherever electric and magnetic fields exist together and
fluctuate in the same place. The simplest example of this is in electrical
circuits, as the preceding section showed. In the general case, however, the
simple equation P = IV must be replaced by a more complex calculation, the
integral of the cross-product of the electrical and magnetic field vectors over a
specified area, thus:

The result is a scalar since it is the surface integral of the Pointing

vector.

Generation
The fundamental principles of much electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and
early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday. His basic method is still
used today: electric current is generated by the movement of a loop of wire, or
disc of copper between the poles of a magnet.

For electric utilities, it is the first process in the delivery of electricity to

consumers. The other processes, electricity transmission, distribution, and
electrical energy storage and recovery using pumped-storage methods are
normally carried out by the electric power industry.

Electricity is mostly generated at a power station by electromechanical

generators, driven by heat engines heated by combustion, geothermal power or
nuclear fission. Other generators are driven by the kinetic energy of flowing
water and wind. There are many other technologies that are used to generate
electricity such as photovoltaic solar panels.

A battery is a device consisting of one or more electrochemical cells that

convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy.[2] Since the invention of
the first battery (or "voltaic pile") in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially
since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a
common power source for many household and industrial applications.
According to a 2005 estimate, the worldwide battery industry generates US$48
billion in sales each year,[3] with 6% annual growth. There are two types of
batteries: primary batteries (disposable batteries), which are designed to be
used once and discarded, and secondary batteries (rechargeable batteries),
which are designed to be recharged and used multiple times. Batteries are
available in many sizes; from miniature button cells used to power hearing aids
and wristwatches to battery banks the size of rooms that provide standby
power for telephone exchanges and computer data centers.
Electric power industry
The electric power industry provides
the production and delivery of
power, in sufficient quantities to
areas that need electricity, through
a grid connection. The grid
distributes electrical energy to
customers. Electric power is
generated by central power stations
or by distributed generation. The
electric power industry has
gradually been trending towards
deregulation – with emerging players
offering consumers competition to the traditional public utility companies.[4]

Use
Electric power, produced from central generating stations and distributed over
an electrical transmission grid, is widely used in industrial, commercial and
consumer applications. The per capita electric power consumption of a country
correlates with its industrial development. [5] Electric motors power
manufacturing machinery and propel subways and railway trains. Electric
lighting is the most important form of artificial light. Electrical energy is used
directly in processes such as extraction of aluminum from its ores and in
production of steel in electric arc furnaces. Reliable electric power is essential
to telecommunications and broadcasting. Electric power is used to provide air
conditioning in hot climates, and in some places electric power is an
economically competitive source of energy for building space heating. Use of
electric power for pumping water ranges from individual household wells to
irrigation projects and energy storage projects.

Electrical efficiency
The efficiency of a system
in electronics and
electrical engineering is
defined as useful power
output divided by the total
electrical power consumed
(a fractional expression),
typically denoted by the
Greek small letter eta (η –
ήτα).
If energy output and input are expressed in the same units, efficiency is a
dimensionless number. Where it is not customary or convenient to represent
input and output energy in the same units, efficiency-like quantities have units
associated with them. For example, the heat rate of a fossil-fuel power plant
may be expressed in BTU per kilowatt-hour. Luminous efficacy of a light source
expresses the amount of visible light for a certain amount of power transfer
and has the units of lumens per watt.

Efficiency of typical electrical devices

Efficiency should not be confused with effectiveness: a system that wastes

most of its input power but produces exactly what it is meant to is effective but
not efficient. The term "efficiency" makes sense only in reference to the wanted
effect. A light bulb, for example, might have 2% efficiency at emitting light yet
still be 98% efficient at heating a room (In practice it is nearly 100% efficient at
heating a room because the light energy will also be converted to heat
eventually, apart from the small fraction that leaves through the windows). An
electronic amplifier that delivers 10 watts of power to its load (e.g., a
loudspeaker), while drawing 20 watts of power from a power source is 50%
efficient. (10/20 × 100 = 50%)

 Electric kettle: more than 90%[citation needed] (comparatively little heat

energy is lost during the 2 to 3 minutes a kettle takes to boil water).
 A premium efficiency electric motor: more than 90% (see Main Article:
Premium efficiency).
 A large power transformer used in the electrical grid may have efficiency
of more than 99%. Early 19th century transformers were much less
efficient, wasting up to a third of the energy passing through them.
[citation needed]
 A steam power plant used to generate electricity may have 30-40%
efficiency

Efficiency of devices at point of maximum power transfer ...

As a result of the maximum power theorem, devices transfer maximum power
to a load when running at 50% electrical efficiency. This occurs when the load
resistance (of the device in question) is equal to the internal Thevenin
equivalent resistance of the power source. This is valid only for non-reactive
source and load impedances.

High efficiency is particularly relevant in systems that can operate from

batteries. Inefficiency may require weighing the cost either of the wasted
energy, or of the required power supply, against the cost of attaining greater
efficiency. Efficiency can usually be improved by choosing different components
or by redesigning the system. Inefficiency probably produces extra heat within
the system, which must be removed if it is to remain within its operating
temperature range. In a climate-controlled environment, like a home or office,
heat generated by appliances may reduce heating costs or increase air
conditioning costs.

Different Types of Electrical Wiring Systems

1. Cleat wiring.
2. Wooden casing and capping wiring.
3. CTS or TRS or PVC sheath wiring.
4. Lead sheathed or metal sheathed wiring.
5. Conduit wiring

Electrical Wiring
Electrical wiring is an electrical installation of cabling and associated devices
such as switches, distribution boards, sockets, and light fittings in a structure.

Wiring is subject to safety standards for design and installation. Allowable wire
and cable types and sizes are specified according to the circuit operating
voltage and electric current capability, with further restrictions on the
environmental conditions, such as ambient temperature range, moisture levels,
and exposure to sunlight and chemicals.

Associated circuit protection, control and distribution devices within a

building's wiring system are subject to voltage, current and functional
specification. Wiring safety codes vary by locality, country or region. The
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is attempting to harmonise
wiring standards amongst member countries, but significant variations in
design and installation requirements still exist.