Preparation:

Before the experiment, the students must have researched on the following:
1. Laws on Series/ Parallel Resistors

Experiment 10: Combination of Resistors

Objectives:
1. determine the resistance by standard color code
2. determine resistance by voltmeter-ammeter method
3. verify the laws on series /parallel resistors.
4. Determine and compare hardness of different brands of bottled water based on its
conductivity
Materials: resistors, voltmeter, ammeter, breadboard, connecting wires

Procedure
A. Determination of Resistance
Individual resistors used in electronic industry are often cylindrical in shape, a few
millimeters in diameter and in length, with wires coming out at the ends. The resistance may be
marked with a standard code using three or four color bands near one end (figure )according to
the scheme shown in table 1. The first two bands ( starting with the band nearest one end) are
digits, the third is the power of 10 multiplier. For example, yellow-violet-orange means 47 x 103
ohms. The fourth band, if present indicates the precision of the value: no band means +/- 20%, a
silver band + /-10% and a gold band + /-5%. 1

Table 1. Color Code for Resistors

Color Value as Digit Value as Multiplier
Black 0 1
Brown 1 10
Red 2 102
Orange 3 103
Yellow 4 104
Green 5 105
Blue 6 106
Violet 7 107
Gray 8 108
White 9 109
Gold 10-1
Silver 10-2

Determine the value of the three resistors you will use in this experiment based on the color code.
Record these as R1, R2 and R3,respectively.

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Open the Simulation Webpage:
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/circuit-construction-kit-dc-virtual-lab/latest/circuit-
construction-kit-dc-virtual-lab_en.html

B. Series Resistors
1. Connect the series combination of the three resistors to a dc source.
2. Using an ammeter and a voltmeter, (or current and voltage sensors) measure the current
and the voltage drop across each resistor.
3. Measure also the total current It and the total voltage Vt across the combination of resistors.
4. Compute experimental total resistance Rt by dividing Vt by It.
5. Compute theoretical value of total resistance.
6. Compute for the % error.

C. Parallel Resistors
1. Connect the parallel combination of resistors to a dc source.
2. Repeat steps 2 to 6 of procedure B.

D. Series/Parallel Resistors
1. Connect R1 parallel to R2.
2. Connect this parallel combination of R1 and R2, in series with R3.
3. Repeat steps 2 to 6 of procedure B.

Post- Laboratory Questions:

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 1. What are the laws of series resistors? Of parallel resistors? Are these laws verified in your
experiment?
2. You have 4 identical resistors, each with a resistance of 5 ohms. Show all possible values
of resistance that you can get using all four resistors.
3. As more doors are opened in a crowded room, the resistance to motion of people trying
to leave the room is reduced. How is this similar to what happens when more branches are
added to a parallel circuit?
4. Are household circuits normally wired in series or in parallel? Why?

5. Biomedical Application. The parts of the body that are most sensitive to electric currents
are the brain, the chest muscles and the nerve centers that controls respiration and the heart.
A current of 1mA passing through the body will barely be noticeable, but a current of
80mA will usually be fatal unless it is immediately stopped.1 In most situations, the amount
of current that will flow into the body will depend on the condition of the skin at contact
locations. Dry skin will have a high resistance but damp or wet skin will have low
resistance. Why?
6. What factors affect the hardness of water? What is the effect of hardness of water to health?
____
1
Donald L.Volz and Gretchen S. DeMoss. Invesigating Environmental Science Through Inquiry,(Beaverton:Vernier
Software and Technology, 2007)
2
Jerry B. Marion,General Physics with Bioscience Essays, (New York: John Wiley and Sons,1979), p 301.

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Name: ALEA, Abigail Jan A. Date Submitted: November 23, 2020
Group Number: 1 Rating: _____________________
Section: 3MBIO1

Experiment 10
Combination of Resistors

Data and Results

A.
. (Member 3) R1 = 87 R2 = 93 R3 = 96

B. Resistors in Series
Voltage (V) Current (I)
R1 2.84 0.03
R2 3.03 0.03
R3 3.13 0.03
RT 9.00 0.03
Experimental RT 300
Theoretical RT 276
% Error 8.70 %

C. Resistors in Parallel
Voltage (V) Current (I)
R1
R2
R3
RT
Experimental RT
Theoretical RT
% Error

D. Series/Parallel Resistors
Voltage (V) Current (I)
R1
R2
R3
RT
Experimental RT
Theoretical RT
% Error

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Sample Computations:

Experimental Rt
𝑉𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙
𝑅=
𝐼𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙
9
𝑅= = 300 Ω
0.03

Theoretical Rt
R1 + R2 + R3
87 + 93 + 96
= 276

Percent error
𝐴𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 − 𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒
/ / 𝑥 100
𝐴𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒
276 − 300
/ / 𝑥 100 = 8.70%
276

Theoretical
If in series, ang theoretical value of resistance is the sum from the color codes
79 80 + 85? Add resistances based on color codes

Conclusion

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