ELECTRICITY

CURRENT ELECTRICITY
 Current is the rate at which charges moves past a fixed point in a circuit
 The direction of the flow of current is from positive terminal to negative terminal.
 One coulomb is the charge passing any point in a circuit when a steady current of 1 ampere flows
for 1 second. That is, 1 C = 1 A s.

Example
1. If the current in a floodlamp is 5 A, what charge passes in 2 s?
Solution
Q = It
= 5A x 2s
Q = 10C

ELECTROMOTIVE FORCE (e.m.f) AND POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE (P.D)

 Electromotive Force is the electrical energy it produces per coulomb of charge.
 The electromotive force of a cell, sometimes referred to as its ‘voltage; depends on the
substances in the cell.
  Potential Difference (p.d) is defined as the energy converted per unit charge passing
through a component.

Example
1. A 60C of charge flow through a bulb which transfers 180J of energy into light. . what is
the potential difference?
RESISTANCE
 Resistance is the opposition to the flow of current in a conductor.

 A good conductor has a low resistance and a poor conductor has a high resistance. The
resistance of a wire of a certain material
(i) increases as its length increases,
(ii) increases as its cross-sectional area decreases,
(iii) depends on the material
 A long thin wire has more resistance than a short thick one of the same material. Silver is
the best conductor, but copper, the next best, is cheaper and is used for connecting wires
and for domestic electric cables.
Ohm’s law
  Ohm’s law states that the current passing through a conductor is directly proportional to
the applied force potential difference provided that temperature and other physical
quantities remain constant.
𝑉
R= 𝐼

This is a reasonable way to measure resistance since the smaller I is for a given V, the greater is
R. (symbol Ω, the Greek letter omega).
 Conductors that obeys Ohm’s law are Ohmic conductors and they produce a straight line
graph from the origin of voltage against current graph as shown below.

 Conductors that do not obey Ohm’s law are called non-ohmic conductors and they
produce a non-linear of voltage against current graph.
Example of Ohmic and non-ohmic conductors
Example
 1. A current of 2A flows through a conductor. The conductor has the p.d of 12V. Find the
resistance of the conductor.

2. Find the p.d across a 1.5ohms resistor when a current of 4A flows through it.

FIXED RESISTOR VARIABLE RESISTOR

- it may be used as a rheostat for changing the current -They are used in
in a circuit; only one end connection and the sliding radio and television.
contact are then required.

Circuit Diagrams
 A physical circuit is the electric circuit you create with real components.
 A circuit diagram is a drawing which uses symbols to represent the different components in the
physical circuit.
 Consider the table below showing circuit symbols.
SERIES AND PARALLEL CONNECTION

(a) Series Connection

 In a series circuit, the charge has a single path from the battery, returning to the
battery.
 Consider the circuit diagram below.

From the diagram above we calculate the following quantities as:

(i) Current:- The current is the same at all points in the series circuit.
I = I1 = I2
(ii) Voltage:- The sum of the p.d V across the resistors (the total resistance) is the same
as the electromotive force.
e.m.f = V1 + V2,... = V
(iii) Resistance:- The total resistance, R of the components in series circuit is equal to the
sum of the separate resistances.
R = R 1 + R2 , …
 (b) Parallel Connection
 In a parallel circuit, the charge has multiple paths from the battery, returning to the
battery.
 Consider the diagram below for parallel connection.

From the diagram above we calculate the following quantities as:

 (iv) Current:- The current in the main circuit is the sum of the currents in the separate
branches .
I = I1 + I2
(v) Voltage:- the voltage passing in each resistor connected in parallel has the same
voltage as that of the battery (e.m.f).
e.m.f = V1 = V2 = V
(vi) Resistance:- The reciprocal of the total resistance equal to the sum of the reciprocal
of individual resistance.
𝟏 𝟏 𝟏
= + ,…
𝑹 𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟐
 If there are only two resistors in parallel we also use:
𝑅1𝑅2
R=
𝑅1+𝑅2

Example two
A p.d. of 24 V from a battery is applied to the network of resistors in the figure below.
a). What is the combined resistance of the 6 Ω and 12 Ω resistors in parallel?
b). What is the current in the 8 Ω resistor?
c). What is the voltage across the parallel network?
d). What is the current in the 6 Ω resistor?
Solution
(a)

(b)
 (c) Let V1 = voltage across parallel network in the first figure. Then
V1 = I × R1 = 2 A × 4 Ω =8 V
(d) Let I1 = current in 6 Ω resistor, then since
V1 = 8 V

HEATING EFFECT OF AN ELECTRIC CURRENT

Electric Power
 Power is the rate of using electrical energy.
 Power is given by the following formulae:
𝐸
P = 𝑡 ……………………………………………………………………………..(i)
P = VI…………………………………………………………………………….(ii)
P = I2R…………………………………………………………………………...(iii)
 P = V2/R…………………………………………………………………………..(iv)

Electrical Energy
E = Pt …………………………………………………………………………………………..(i)
E = VIt………………………………………………………………………………………….(ii)
E = I2Rt………………………………………………………………………………………...(iii)
E = V2/Rt………………………………………………………………………………………..(iv)
Example
A current of 2.0A is passed through a resistor of 20 Ω for 1.0 hour. Calculate the electrical
energy converted into heat energy in the resistor.
Solution
E = I2Rt
= (2.0)2 x 20 Ω x (1 x 60 x 60)s
E = 2.88 x 105 J
Cost of Electricity
 Electricity supply companies charge for the electrical energy they supply. A joule is a
very small amount of energy and a larger unit, the kilowatt-hour (kWh), is used.
 A kilowatt-hour is the electrical energy used by a 1 kW appliance in 1 hour.
Example
1. What is the cost of heat water in a tank with a 3kW heater for 90 minutes, if the cost of
electricity is K0.17 per unit?
Solution
Electrical energy (units used) = Pt
90
= 3kW x 60 ℎ
= 4.5kWh
Consumption cost = units used x price per unit
= 4.5kWh x K0.17
= K0.77

Household circuit
 Electricity usually comes to our homes by an underground cable containing two wires,
the live (L) and the neutral (N). The neutral is earthed at the local sub-station and so
there is no p.d. between it and earth.
(a) Circuits in parallel
 Every circuit is connected in parallel with the supply, i.e. across the live and neutral, and
receives the full mains p.d. of 230 V (in the UK).
 The advantages of having appliances connected in parallel, rather than in series, can be
seen by studying the lighting circuit in figure below.

Advantages:
(i) The p.d. across each lamp is fixed (at the mains p.d.), so the lamp shines with the same
brightness irrespective of how many other lamps are switched on.
(ii) Each lamp can be turned on and off independently; if one lamp fails, the others can
still be operated.

(b) Switches and fuses

  These are always in the live wire. If they were in the neutral, light switches and power
sockets would be ‘live’ when switches were ‘off’ or fuses ‘blown’
(c) Ring main switch
 The live and neutral wires each run in two complete rings round the house and the
power sockets, each rated at 13A, are tapped off from them.
 Thinner wires can be used since the current to each socket flows by two paths, i.e.
from both directions in the ring.
(d) Three pin Plug

 Live wire supplies the electrical energy to the appliance. The line has a high voltage.
If you touch this line, it is dangerous because the current flows through your body. You
may die of electric shock.
 Neutral wire makes the circuit complete in the electrical appliance.
 Earth wire is connected to the metal casing of an electrical appliance. If live wire is in
contact with the metal casing due to any accident, the user gets the electric shock from
the metal casing. If earth wire is connected to the metal casing, the current escapes from
the earth wire. It protects the user from the electric
shock.
Ways of Conserving Electrical Energy
i. Using energy serving bulbs
ii. Using less hot water
iii. Reduce excessive heating and cooling
iv. Reduce pool pump operating hours
v. Switch off equipment that are not in used
Electrical Hazards
i. Overloading sockets will lead to overheating and electrical fire
ii. Use a long extension cords which can cause tripping or accident
iii. Poor wiring and defective electric outlets can cause a shock when in contact
iv. Pouring water on an electrical fire
v. Broken sockets and electrical appliances leading to electrical shock and sometimes
fire.
vi. Touching electrical appliances with wet hands leading to shocks.
 Electrical Safety
i. Use the right size of circuit breakers and fuses to avoid overloading
ii. Always replace broken plugs and naked wires
iii. Use the correction number of appliances
iv. Do not touch naked electrical cables with bare hands to avoid electric shock
v. Always pay attention to the warning signals given out by your appliances.

Magnetic effect of an Electric Current

 what is a magnetic effect of Current?
Electricity and Magnetism are related phenomenon. When an electric current is passed
through metallic conductor, it generates a magnetic field around it.

Magnetic Field due to current through straight Conductor

Electric current through a straight Conductor generates magnetic field around it.
a)Magnetic Field intensity increases on the increasing the current in the conductor
b) Magnetic field decrease as the distance increase from the conductor
c) Magnetic Field direction can be find using Right Hand Thumb Rule

What is Right Hand Thumb rule?

When you are holding a current-carrying straight conductor in your right hand such that
the thumb points towards the direction of current. Then your fingers will wrap around the
conductor in the direction of the field lines of the magnetic field

Magnetic Field due to a Current through a Circular Loop

a) As with straight conductor, the magnetic field lines would be in the form of concentric circles
around every part of the periphery of the conductor.
b) The magnetic field would be stronger near the periphery of the loop as magnetic field lines
tend to remain closer when near the conductor.
c) The magnetic field lines would be distant from each other when we move towards the centre
of the current carrying loop. At the centre, the arcs of big circles would appear as straight lines

Magnetic Field due to current through a coil having number of turns

We know that the magnetic field produced by a current-carrying wire at a given point depends
directly on the current passing through it and the current in each circular turn has the same
direction
Therefore, Magnitude of magnetic field gets summed up with increase in the number of turns of
coil. If there are ‘n’ turns of coil, magnitude of magnetic field will be ‘n’ times of magnetic field
in case of a single turn of coil.
Solenoid
A coil of many circular turns of insulated copper wire wrapped closely in the shape of a cylinder
is called a solenoid
Magnetic Effect of Current carrying Solenoid
A current carrying solenoid produces similar pattern of magnetic field as a bar magnet. One end
of solenoid behaves as the north pole and another end behaves as the south pole. Magnetic field
lines are parallel inside the solenoid; like a bar magnet; which shows that magnetic field is same
at all points inside the solenoid

Electric Cells
 An electric cell is a device that converts chemical energy to electrical energy.
 A chemical cell consists of two different netals called electrodes and a conducting
paste and liquid called an electrolyte.
 Chemical cells are classified as either primary or secondary cell.

Primary Cell
 In primary cells, the chemical energy is directly changed into electric energy. The
primary cell is called a dry cell because of the electrolyte paste.
 It has a zinc and carbon as electrodes.
 Example of primary cells are the batteries used in remote controls, alarms, watches. Etc
  Consider the diagram below of a primary cell.

Secondary Cell
 The Electrical Cell which can be electrically recharged after being used is called secondary
cell.
 These kind of cells are powered by reversible chemical reaction and the state of Electrodes
and Electrolyte can be reversed to it’s original form by applying external power source after
being used.
 Secondary Cells usually have high discharge rate performance compared to Primary cell,
and can be used with high loads that requires good discharge rate performance.
 A car battery is one of the examples of a secondary cell
 The electrode of a car battery are made of lead. There a car battery is also called Lead- acid
accumulator.
 Consider the diagram below of a lead-acid accumulator.
Charging And Discharging A Lead-Acid Accumulator
 An accumulator is recharged by passing a current through it in an opposite direction to
one of the current it supplies.
 A current in one direction called direct current is needed. If the many supply is used, it
must be first be charged from an alternating current to direct current supply by a rectifier
in the battery charger.
 To discharge the battery, the accumulator is in use, a little lead suphate is formed at both
plates. The electromotive force and relative density of the acid slowly decreases. The
density of the sulphuric acid is checked using an instrument called a hydrometer

Methods of disposing used batteries

i. Recycling of used cells
ii. Using rechargeable batteries more than primary batteries
iii. Buying batteries containing less mercury, lead and cadmium
iv. Formulation and implementation of more stringent laws regarding cells disposal

STATIC ELECTRICITY
Electrostatic Forces
 Charges are either positive or negative.
 Like charges repel, unlike charges attract.
 SI Unit of Electric Charge: Coulomb (C).
Electric Field
 This is a region where a small charge experiences an electric force. (Like charges
experience repulsive force, unlike charges experience attractive force.)
 Electric fields are represented by electric field lines.
 These arrow-marked lines (one arrow for one line) represent the direction of electric force
of a free-moving positive charge. The closer parts of the lines (the regions nearer to the
charge) indicate stronger electric force.
 The figures below show the electric field lines of positive charge (+ sign) and a negative
charge (- sign).
 Uses Of Static Charges
i. They are used in photocopying machines
ii. They are used in inkjet printers
iii. They are used
Properties Of Static Charges
i. They obey the law of electrostatic which states that like charges repel, unlike
charges attracts.
ii. They produce sparks

The Gold-Leaf Electroscope

 It is a very sensitive instrument used for detecting and testing small electrostatic charges.
 The metal case is earthed. It can be earthed by placing it on a wooden table.

How to Charge an Electroscope by Contact

 Touch the brass cap with a charged rod of either sign.
 The leaf diverges from the brass plate, since the brass plate and gold leaf are similarly
charged.
 The divergence persists for a long time even after the rod is removed.

How to Test the Sign of Charge on a Rod

 Charge the electroscope positively.
 Bring a positively charged Perspex rod near but not touching.
 A positive rod will increase the divergence while a negative rod will decrease the
divergence.
 Discharge the electroscope by touching it with your finger and note that the leaf
collapses.
 How to Charge an Electrode by Induction
 Bring a positively charged rod near the cap of an uncharged electroscope.
 The leaf diverges as the charged rod attracts the electrons upward, leaving similar charges
in the plate and the gold leaf.
 Touch with your finger to earth it.
 The leaf collapses as the electrons neutralise.
 Remove the finger and remove the rod.
 A large divergence results as the extra negative charge obtained from the earth distributes
throughout the electroscope.
 Therefore, the electroscope has been charged negatively.
 To charge it positively, repeat the above with a negative rod.

How to Charge a Body by Induction

For charging it positively:

For charging it negatively:

Electrostatic Induction
Definition: Electrostatic induction is a process whereby a conductor becomes
charged when a charged body is brought near it but not in direct contact with
it.
How to Charge Two Conductors by Induction

How to Charge One Sphere

Example

Example
 Example

Lightning
This is the discharge of electrons occurring between two charged clouds or
between a cloud and earth.
Difference Between Static And Current Electricity

Static electricity Current electricity

1. Does not flow through a conductor Flows through a conductor

2. Involves very high voltage and low Involves much lower voltage and much
current higher current

3. It occurs when positive and negative It occurs when positive charges flow through
charges are held apart from each other negative charges