ENGINEERING UTILITIES

1 CE
31-5

MODULE
2

THE PROPERTIES AND UNITS OF

ELECTRICITY
THE PROPERTIES AND UNITS OF ELECTRICITY ARE:
 ❑ VOLTAGE also known as ELECTRIC POTENTIAL or ELECTRO MOTIVE FORCE(emf)
measured in VOLTS
❑ CURRENT measured in AMPERES
❑ RESISTANCE measured in OHMS
❑ POWER measured in WATTS or HORSEPOWER
❑ ENERGY measured in KILOWATT-HOUR
❑ QUANTITY measured in COULOMB
Volt was named after Alessandro Volta,
VOLTAGE an Italian scientist who discovered that
electrons flow when two different metals
Is the electrical pressure or force which are connected by a wire and then dipped
keeps electricity in motion. It is also known into a liquid that conduct or carry electrons.
as Electromotive force or Electric Potential.
Voltage can be technically defined as, the
pressure which causes 1 ampere to flow
Common commercial voltage ratings :
through a wire with a resistance of 1 ohm.
 1. Philippines 220 -240 V 2. U.S.A. 110 Voltmeter is the devise used to
– 120 V 3. Dry Cell 1.5 V 4. Storage
measure the voltage of a circuit.
Battery 12 V

CURRENT
Current is the flow of electricity in a circuit, an unbroken electrical pathway from
source to load and back to source.
The standard unit used measuring the strength of an electric current is
Ampere, named after Andre M. Ampere.
Electric current travels at the speed of light which is equivalent to 299,330
km/sec. Ammeter is the device used to measure electric current.

ELECTRIC CURRENT IS CLASSIFIED AS :

• Direct Current (DC) 4. It could be distribution to far distance with low voltage drop.

5. It is more efficient compared with the direct current. AC

The DC electricity, flows in one direction.
generator was invented by Nikola Tesla.
The flow is said to be from negative to

RESISTANCE
positive. The normal source of a DC
electricity is the dry cell or storage
battery. Direct current generator was
invented by Thomas Edison.
• Alternating Current(AC) Resistance is the friction or opposition to
the flow of current by the wires and
The AC electricity constantly reverses its transformers.
direction of flow. It is generated by machine
Technically, Resistance is defined as
called generator. This type of current is
the resistance which allow 1 ampere of
universally accepted because of it unlimited
current to flow when 1 volt is impressed
number of applications with the following
upon it.
advantages.
1. It is easily produced. The unit of resistance is Ohm.
2. It is cheaper to maintain.
Ohmmeter is the device used to
3. It could be transformed into higher voltage
measure electrical resistance.

For direct current (DC electricity), the term

Resistance is used for friction, and
Impedance for alternating current (AC
electricity).

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCES CONDUCTOR

RESISTANCE :

1. Composition of the Conductor. This refers to a conductor

having free electrons that has low resistance.
 2. Length of Wire. The longer the wire, the higher is the resistance.
3. Cross Sectional Area of Wire. The bigger the cross sectional area
of the wire, the lower its resistance.
4. Temperature. Metal offers high resistance to high temperature(heat).
an EMF or 1 volt.
ELECTRIC
POWER
Electric Power is the rate of doing
electrical work.
Units of Electric Power for different
devices are:
Electric Power is defined as work is done at • Electric appliances - watts or kilo watts •
the rate of 1 watt when a constant current of 1
ampere is maintained through a resistance by Motors - Horsepower
 • Transformers Kilovolt-Amperes (KVA) **1 horsepower = 746 watts

ELECTRIC ENERGY
It is the capacity of doing electrical work. Energy is expressed in the formula:
Energy = Power x Time

Electrical loads in buildings are measured in Kilowatt – Hours (KWH). This is commonly
known as power consumption which a user pays its equivalent monetary value to the
firm or company that provides the
electricity.
The device used to measure electric energy is Kilowatt – Hour Meter.
 ELECTRIC QUANTITY
The unit of Electric Quantity is the Coulomb. One coulomb
comprises approximately 6.25 x 1018 electrons.

It is the rate of flow (measure in amperes) that is important

to the electrician rather than the total quantity of electricity
which flows.
Hence, the unit coulomb is almost never directly used in
practical electrical work.
between voltage, current and resistance.
OHM’S LAW It is merely a restatement, as applied to
electric circuits, of the general law which
governs all physical phenomena which is: The
Ohm’s Law establishes the relationships result produced is directly proportional to the
effort and inversely proportional to the Note : Volts
opposition. is
sometimes
In an electric circuit, : expressed in
• the current established is the result, •The formulas as
E
voltage which establishes it is the effort,
•The opposition is represented by the
resistance.

SAMPLE PROBLEM USING OHM’S LAW

A bread toaster constructed of 55
ohms resistance wire requires 4
amperes for its operation. What
voltage should be
applied?
Given : = 4 amperes Voltage= ?
Resistance = 55 ohms Current
Formula : Where :
P = Power in watts
V=IxR
I = Current in amperes
Solution : E = Voltage in volts
V = 4 amperes x 55 ohms V = 220 Power in A-C circuits. The power of an A-C
volts is very seldom equal to the direct product of
the volts and amperes. In order to calculate

POWER FORMULA the power of a single phase A-C circuit, the

Power formula establishes the
relationships between power, voltage,
and current.
For D-C circuits, the power formula is :
product of the volts and amperes must be
multiplied by a certain factor called power
factor.
Power Factor is the ratio of the true power or
watts to the apparent power or volt-amperes.
The power factor is expressed as a decimal or
in percentage and may have a value
anywhere between 0 and 1 but can never be
greater than 1.
 POWER FORMULA FOR A-C CIRCUITS
The power formula for A-C circuits
is expressed in this formula:
P= I x E x PF
Where :
P = Power in watts
I = Current in amperes
2. Solving for True Power
E = Voltage in volts
PF = Power Factor.
SAMPLE PROBLEM: The
illustration shows a single-phase
circuit, the ammeter reads 10
amperes and the voltmeter reads
220 volts. The wattmeter reads
1,870 watts.
Determine the power factor.
Solution : Power Factor = 0.85
1. Solving for Apparent A-C generator
Power. Apparent Power = I
xE
= 10 amperes x 220
volts Apparent Power = Voltmeter : reads 220 volts
2,200 volt amperes
True Power = 1,870 watts
(This is the reading from
the wattmeter. A wattmeter
always indicates real or
true power.
3. Solving for Power
Factor. PF = True Power/
Apparent Power
= 1,870 watts/ 2,200 volts
amperes
Wattmeter : reads 1,870 Ammeter : reads 10 220 volt Appliance

watts amperes
END OF MODULE 2