DC CIRCUITS

BASIC PRINCIPLES
Voltage
Voltage is the energy per unit charge.
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Where: V – the voltage in Volts.

 W – the energy in Joules.
 Q – the charge in Coulombs.
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Current
Current is the rate of charge flow.
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Where: I – the current in Amperes.

 Q – the charge in Coulombs.
 t – the time in seconds.
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Resistance
Resistance is the opposition to the flow of
current.
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Where: R – resistance in ohms, Ω

 A – cross-sectional area of the
conductor
 ρ – resistivity or specific resistance
 L – length of the conductor
 V – volume of the conductor
Resistance
Resistivity of Some Common Materials
Material Resistivity ρ
Ω-m Ω-CM/ft
Aluminum 2 . 8 3 x 1 0 -8 1 7 .0 2
Copper 1 . 7 2 4 x 1 0 -8 10 . 371
Gold 2 . 44 x 10 -8 14 . 676
Iron 98 x 10 -8 589 . 4
Silver 1 . 629 x 10 -8 9 . 805
Ohm’s Law
In an electrical circuit, the current is directly
proportional to voltage and is inversely
proportional to resistance.
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Where: I – current in Amperes.

 V – voltage in Volts.
 R – resistance in ohms, Ω.
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Series-connected
Resistors
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Series circuit – the resistances are connected
end to end. The current flows through them
one after another.
Parallel-connected
Resistors
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Parallel circuit – the resistances are connected
across each other.
Series-Parallel connected
Resistors
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Series – parallel circuit – a combinational
circuit which when simplified will result into a
series circuit.
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Parallel-Series connected
Resistors
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Parallel – series circuit – a combinational
circuit which when simplified will result into a
parallel circuit.
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Network Laws &
Theorems
Kirchhoff’s Law
Maxwell’s Mesh Method
Nodal Analysis
Millman’s Theorem
Kirchhoff’s Law
Kirchhoff’s Current Law - the algebraic sum
of the currents at any junction or node of an
electric circuit is zero.
Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law - the algebraic sum
of the emf’s and the resistance voltage drops
in any closed loop of an electric circuit is zero.
Kirchhoff’s Law
Sign Conventions for Kirchhoff’s Law:
qCurrent towards the node, positive current.
qCurrent away from the node, negative current.
qIn a voltage source, if loop enters on minus and
goes out on plus, positive emf.
qIn a voltage source, if loop enters on plus and goes
out on minus, negative emf.
qIn a resistance, if the loop direction is the same as
the current direction, negative resistance
voltage drop.
qIn a resistance, if the loop direction is opposite to
the current direction, positive resistance
voltage drop.
Kirchhoff’s Law
Example:
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By KCL:
 at juntion b: I1 + I2 - I3 = 0
By KVL :
For loop fabef: E1 – I1R1 – I3R3 = 0
For loop dcbed: E2 – I2R2 – I3R3 = 0
For loop fabcdef: E – I1R1 + I2R2 – E2 = 0
1
Maxwell’s Mesh Method
This method involves a set of independent
loop currents assigned to as many meshes
as it exist in the circuit and these currents are
employed in connection with appropriate
resistances when the KVL equations are
written.
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Maxwell’s Mesh Method
Example:
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By KVL:
 For loop A : E1 – IA ( R1 + R3 ) – IBR3 = 0
 For loop B : E2 - IB (R2 + R3 ) - IAR3 = 0
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 Note: Mesh currents IA and IB are evaluated by simultaneous

substitutions of the equations formulated from each loop or
mesh using KVL.
Nodal Analysis
Using this method, a circuit with “n” nodes,
has a solution with only “n – 1” number of
equations needed.
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Nodal Analysis
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 Note: Since there are three (n=3) nodes in this circuit,
therefore only two equations are needed to solve this
problem.
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Nodal Analysis
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By KCL at node a: I1 = I2 + I3

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Nodal Analysis
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By KCL at node b: I4 = I3 + I5

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Nodal Analysis
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 Note: Node voltages Va and Vb are evaluated by

simultaneous substitutions of the equations formulated
using KCL and correspondingly, currents flowing through
each resistances can be solved.
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Millman’s Theorem
Any combination of parallel connected voltage
sources can be represented as a single
equivalent source appropriately.
The resulting voltage across the parallel
combination is the ratio of the algebraic sum
of the currents that each source individually
delivers when short circuited to the algebraic
sum of the internal conductance.
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Millman’s Theorem
Millman’s equivalent circuit:
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Millman’s Theorem
Example: Solve I1, I2 and I3.
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Millman’s Theorem
Step 1: Draw the Millman’s equvalent circuit
and solve for Vab .
Millman’s Theorem
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Step 2: Solve for I1, I2 and I3.
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Sample Problem
Two batteries are connected in parallel
supplying a common load of 2Ω. Batteries A
and B have open-circuit voltages and internal
resistances of 10V, 2Ω; and 8V, 2Ω
respectively. Calculate the load current.