Lesson 5

Ohm’s Law and Joule’s Law

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

Introduction
When beginning to explore the world of
electricity and electronics, it is vital to
start by understanding the basics of
voltage, current, and resistance. These are
the three basic building blocks required to
manipulate and utilize electricity. At first,
these concepts can be difficult to grasp
because we cannot "see" them. One
cannot see with the naked eye the energy
flowing through a wire or the voltage of a
battery sitting on a table. Nowhere did we
know that these electrical quantities plays
a big-role in our day-to-day living.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Introduction
Electricity is the movement of electrons. Electrons create charge,
which we can harness to do work. Your lightbulb, your stereo, your
phone, etc., are all harnessing the movement of the electrons in order to
do work. They all operate using the same basic power source: the
movement of electrons.
The three basic quantities can be explained using electrons, or more
specifically, the charge they create:
 Voltage is the difference in charge between two points.
 Current is the rate at which charge is flowing.
 Resistance is a material's tendency to resist the flow of charge (current).

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Electrical Circuit
A circuit is a closed loop that allows charge to move
from one place to another. Components in the circuit
allow us to control this charge and use it to do work.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Electrical Circuit
Georg Simon Ohm (March 16, 1789 – July 6,
1854) was a German physicist and mathematician.
As a school teacher, Ohm began his research
with the new electrochemical cell, invented by
Italian scientist, Alessandro Volta.
Using equipment of his own creation, Ohm
found that there is a direct proportionality between
the potential difference (voltage) applied across a
conductor and the resultant electric current. This
relationship is known today as Ohm's law

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Voltage
• The amount of potential energy between two points on a circuit. One
point has more charge than another.
• This difference in charge between the two points is called voltage.
• It is measured in volts, which, technically, is the potential energy
difference between two points that will impart one joule of energy per
coulomb of charge that passes through it (don't panic if this makes no
sense, all will be explained).
• The unit "volt" is named after the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta
who invented what is considered the first chemical battery.
• Voltage is represented through symbol in equations and schematics by
the letter "V"
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Water Tank Analogy for Voltage
Water = Charge
Pressure = Voltage
Flow = Current
Consider a water tank at a certain
height above the ground. At the bottom
of this tank there is a hose. The pressure
at the end of the hose can represent
voltage. The water in the tank represents
charge. The more water in the tank, the
higher the charge, the more pressure is
measured at the end of the hose.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Water Tank Analogy for Voltage
We can relate of this tank as a battery,
a place where we store a certain amount
of energy and then release it. If we drain
our tank a certain amount, the pressure
created at the end of the hose goes down.
We can relate this as decreasing voltage,
like when a flashlight gets dimmer as the
batteries run down.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Current
We can relate the amount of water
flowing through the hose from the tank
as current. The higher the pressure, the
higher the flow, and vice-versa. With
water, we measure the volume of the
water flowing through the hose over a
certain period of time. With electricity,
we measure the amount of charge
flowing through the circuit over a period
of time.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Current
Current is measured in Amperes, A
(usually just referred to as "Amps"). An
ampere is defined as 6.241*10^18
electrons (1 Coulomb) per second
passing through a point in a circuit.
Amps are represented in equations by
the symbol letter "I".
Assuming we have two tanks, each with
a hose coming from the bottom. Each
tank has the exact same amount of water,
but the hose on one tank is narrower
than the hose on the other.
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Current
We measure the same
amount of pressure at the end
of either hose, but when the
water begins to flow, the flow
rate of the water in the tank
with the narrower hose will be
less than the flow rate of the
water in the tank with the wider
hose.
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Current
In electrical terms, the
current through the narrower
hose is less than the current
through the wider hose. If we
want the flow to be the same
through both hoses, we have to
increase the amount of water
(charge) in the tank with the
narrower hose.
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Resistance
Consider again our two water tanks,
one with a narrow pipe and one with a
wide pipe.
It stands to reason that we can't fit as
much volume through a narrow pipe
than a wider one at the same pressure.
This is resistance. The narrow pipe
"resists" the flow of water through it
even though the water is at the same
pressure as the tank with the wider pipe.
Hose Width = Resistance

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Resistance
In electrical terms, this is
represented by two circuits
with equal voltages and
different resistances.
The circuit with the higher
resistance will allow less
charge to flow, meaning the
circuit with higher resistance
has less current flowing
through it. PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Resistance
Ohm defines the unit of
resistance of "1 Ohm" as the
resistance between two points in a
conductor where the application of
1 volt will push 1 ampere, or
6.241×10^18 electrons.
This value is usually represented
in schematics with the greek letter
"Ω", which is called omega, and
pronounced "ohm".
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
Ohm's Law
•Electric current is proportional to voltage and inversely
proportional to resistance.

V = IR V = Voltage in volts
I = Current in amps
R = Resistance in ohms
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
Sample Problem 1:
A small light bulb is connected to a 6 V battery and draws 2 A of
current. What is the net resistance of the bulb?
Given:
V=6V
I=2A
R=?
Solution:
R = V/I.
R=6V/2A
R=3Ω
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
Sample Problem 2:
A motor with an operating resistance of 32 ¾ is connected to a voltage
source. The current in the circuit is 1.5 A. What is the voltage of the source?
Given:
R = 32 Ω;
I = 1.5 A
V=?
Solution:
V=IxR
V = 1.5 A x 32 Ω
V = 48 V

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

Sample Problem 3
Determine the amount of current going through a 50 Ω; resistor with a
voltage of 120 V.
Given:
R = 50 Ω
V = 120 V
I=?
Solution:
I = V/R
I = 120 V / 50 Ω
I = 2.4 A

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 JOULE’S LAW
History
It was James Prescott Joule, not Georg Simon Ohm, who first
discovered the mathematical relationship between power dissipation and
current through a resistance. This discovery, published in 1841, followed
the form of the last equation (P = I2R), and is properly known as Joule’s
Law. However, these power equations are so commonly associated with
the Ohm’s Law equations relating voltage, current, and resistance (E=IR ;
I=E/R ; and R=E/I) that they are frequently credited to Ohm.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 JOULE’S LAW
Overview
 Joule’s Law: P = I2R ; P = IE ; P = E2/R
 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, W, (one joule per second, J/S)
 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.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Passive Sign Convention
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.
 Power flowing into a circuit from a component is
defined to have a negative sign.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Resistive circuits
In the case of resistive (Ohmic, or linear) loads, Joule's law
can be combined with Ohm's law (V = IR) to produce alternative
expressions for the amount of power that is dissipated:
P = IV = I2R = V2 / R
where
P = Power dissipated
I = current
V = Voltage
R = electrical resistance
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Sample Problem 1
Given a circuit component that has a voltage of 5 V and a resistance of 2 Ω. What is the
power dissipated?
Given:
V=5V
R = 2 ohms
P=?
Solution:
P = V2R
P = (5 V)2 / 2 ohms
P = 12.5 W
I = V/R
I = 120 V / 50 Ω
I = 2.4 A
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
 Sample Problem 2
Sample Problem 2
The resistance of the resistor is 15 Ω and the current going through the resistor is 4 A.
What is the power through the resistor?
Given:
I=4A
R = 15
P=?
Solution:
P = I2 / R
P = (4 A)2 / 15 ohms
P = 240 W

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

Sample Problem 3
Find the power dissipated in each of these extension cords:
a) an extension cord having a 0.06 Ω resistance and through which 5,00 A is
flowing, and
b) a cheaper cord utilising (using) thinner wire and with a resistance of 0.30
Ω, through which 5,00 A is flowing.
Given:
a) I = 5 A ; R = 0.06 ohms
b) I = 5 A ; R = 0.30 ohms
Solution:
a) P = I2R = (5 A)2(0.06 ohms) = 1.5 W
b) P = I2R = (5 A)2(0.30 ohms) = 7.5 W
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
Sample Problem 4
When power is dissipated in a device there is a transfer of energy from one
kind to another. For example, a resistor may get very hot which indicates
that the energy is being dissipated as heat.
Power was the rate at which work was done, the rate at which energy is
transferred. If we want to calculate the total amount of energy we need to
multiply the rate of energy transfer by the time over which that energy
transfer took place.
Electrical energy is simply power times time.

E=Pxt
Where Energy is measure in Joules, J and time in seconds, s.
PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER
Sample Problem 4
A 30 W light bulb is left on for 8 hours overnight, how much energy was
wasted?
Given:
t = 8 hrs = 8 hrs × 3,600 s= 28,800 s
P = 30 W

Solution:
E=Pxt
E = 30 W x 28,800 s
E = 864,000 J

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

Sample Problem 5
The resistance of the resistor is 27 Ω and the current going through the resistor is 3.3 A. What is the (a)
power for the resistor and how much (b) energy is dissipated in 35 s?
Given:
I = 3.3 A
R = 27 Ω
t = 35 s
a) P = ?
b) E =
Solution:
P = I2R
P = (3.3 A)2 x (27 Ω) = 294.03 W
E = Pt
E = (294.03 W) x (35 s)
E = 10 291.05 J

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 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.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Power generation in the Philippines
It is not considered as a public utility operation, which means
interested parties do not need to secure a congressional franchise
to operate a power generation company.
However, power generation is regulated by the Energy Regulatory
Commission (ERC) who must issue a certificate of compliance to
interested parties to ensure that the standards set forth in the
Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA) are
followed. The ERC is also responsible for determining any power
abuse or anti-competitive behavior.

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Cost of Electricity
Electricity is sold in units which are one kilowatt hour (kWh). A
kilowatt hour is simply the use of 1 kW for 1 hr. Using this, you
can work out exactly how much electricity different appliances
will use and how much this will cost you.
C = cost
E = energy
C = E x price

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER

 Sample Problem 6
How much does it cost to run a 900 W microwave oven for 2.5 minutes if the cost of
electricity is 61.6 centavos per kWh?
Given:
W = 900 W = 0.9 kW
t = 2.5 minutes = 2.5 / 60 = 4.17 x 102 h
Solution:
E = Pt
E = (0.9 kW) x (4.17 x 10-2 h)
E = 3.75×10−2 kWh
C = E x price
C = (3.75×10−2 kWh) x (61.6 centavos)
C = 2.31 centavos

PHYSICS 2 | STEM 2ND SEMESTER