IT1810

Laboratory Exercise
KCL, KVL, and Delta-Wye Networks
Objectives:

At the end of the exercise, the students should be able to:

 Properly use multimeter for measuring electrical units;

 Apply the use of KCL and KVL in solving for current, voltage, and resistance; and
 Identify the resistance of delta and wye resistor networks.

Materials:

 Breadboard
 8 pcs. assorted resistors, ¼ watt
 1 pc. 1kΩ resistor, ¼ watt
 1 pc. 470Ω resistor, ¼ watt
 10 pc. 100Ω resistor, ¼ watt
 Power source (9v battery with holder)
 Solid copper wire
 Digital multimeter

Basic Principles:

Kirchhoff’s current law (KCL) states that “any current value that enters a specific
node is positive, while any current value that exits the node is negative.” KCL
explains that the algebraic sum of the currents entering any node is zero. This
means that any current entering a specific node is equivalent to the current that
escapes the node, thus equating the equation to zero. (Refer to Figure 1.) Figure 1. A node of a circuit
In Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL), when we say a closed path, it refers to the
loop of the circuit or, in other case, voltages that are in a line of path from a
certain point to another. KVL is also defined as “the sum of the voltage drops
is equal to the sum of the voltage rises. which equates to zero.” As noticed
in the circuit loop, there is a dictated movement of current that should be
followed to get the correct value. In addition, there are resistor polarities (in
some cases, these are usually not present) that should also be followed.
(Refer to Figure 2.)
Procedures:
(Note: This activity must be supervised by a lab facilitator.) Figure 2. A circuit loop

1. From Figure 3, form the following series circuit in a breadboard and compute the value using the voltage
divider formula and accurately measure for the value of voltage in each resistance with a multimeter.
Write your computations and measurements in Table 1.

Parameters Computed Measured

V1
V2
V3
Table 1

Figure 3

03 Laboratory Exercise 1 *Property of STI

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 IT1810

2. From Figure 4, form the following parallel circuit in a breadboard and accurately measure for its current
with a multimeter. Write your computations and measurements in Table 2.

Measured Computed
VS iS i1 i2 iS i1 i2
9V
Table 2
Figure 4

3. From Figure 5, form the following delta-wye circuits in a breadboard and accurately measure for its
resistance with a multimeter. Afterward, compute for the percent difference. Write your measurements
and calculations in Table 3.

𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍 − 𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔
% 𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫. = × 𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏%
𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒍 + 𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔
� �
𝟐𝟐

Figure 5. Wye (left) and Delta (right) resistors

R12 R23 R31

Wye
Delta
% Difference
Table 3

Observation and Conclusion:

Guide questions:
1. Do KCL and KVL help in finding the accurate measurement in circuits? Why or why not?
2. What do you think is the difference of the resistance between delta and wye network circuits?

Criteria/Scoring Indicator Score

Content Provided supporting details and factual scenarios 5
Organization of Ideas Expressed clear points and arranged ideas 5
Total 10

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