Volume B Chapter 18

Electricity
 What we will Learn…
• What is a current?
• How to draw electric circuit diagrams
• What is potential difference, voltage and E.M.F?
• What is resistance?
• S/E: Circuits arranged in series versus parallel
• S/E: Fixed resistors versus variable resistors
• Effects of electric current
 What i s Electricity???

Definition:

Electricity is a form of energy that can

be easily changed to other forms.
Where does Electricity come from?
Mainly 2 sources:
1) Power Stations
- Supply a lot of electricity
-Used in many electrical
appliances
2) Electric Cells (batteries)
- Supply a little electricity
- Portable
- Safe
 H o w d o e s an E l e c t r i c a l
Appliance Work?
• To make an electrical appliance work,
electricity must flow through it.
• The flow of electricity is called an electric
current.
• The path along which the electric current
moves is called the electric circuit.
 What i s an E l e c t r i c
Cu r r e n t ???
electric
cell connecting
wire

filament

flow of electrons

Definition:

An electric current is the rate of flow of electric

charges in a circuit.
 Electric Charges
• Electric charges are made up of positive
charges (protons) and negative charges
(electrons).

• When these charges flow in a circuit, a

current is produced.
 How does electricity flow?
• The battery in a circuit gives energy to
the electrons and pushes them around
a circuit, from the negative terminal of
the cell, round the circuit and back to
the positive terminal of the cell.
 How to Measure Current?
• The SI unit for electric current is ampere (A).
• Smaller currents are measured in
milliamperes (mA).
1 A = 1,000 mA

1 mA = 0.001 A

• Different electrical components and

appliances require different sizes of current
to turn them on.
 Instrument to Measure Current
• An ammeter is an instrument used for
measuring electric current.
 Ammeter
• It must be connected in series in the circuit.

• Positive side of ammeter must be connected

nearest to the positive terminal of the battery
(electric cell), and vice versa.
 Electric Circuits
• Electric circuits are
connecting wires
made up of electrical
components electric cell

• These components
must be joined
together without any
gap in between to
light bulb circuit board
form a closed circuit.
Note:
Components refer to the
light bulb, wires, battery
 Electric Circuits
• Incomplete circuits are called open circuits.

connecting wire is no source of

missing electrical energy

Both the circuits in the diagram are incomplete, hence they are known
as “open circuits”.
 An e l e c t r i c c u r r e n t f l o w s
o n l y when t h e r e is:
• a source of electrical energy and

• a closed circuit
connecting wires

electric cell

light bulb circuit board

 How to draw Circuit Diagrams
Component Symbol Component Symbol

+ +

An electric cell Battery

Switch (open)

Light bulb (lamp) Switch Switch (closed)

Connecting wires Connecting wires

(not joined) (joined)

Symbols are used to represent the various electrical

components in circuits.
Examples o f circuit diagrams:
 Switches
A switch is used to open or close a circuit.

Main s w i t c h used
in b u i l d i n g s

S w i tc h e s used o n c i r c u i t
C i r c u i t d i a g r a m s f o r open
and c l o s e d circuits

Open circuit. C l o s e circuit.

Bulb does not Bulb w i l l light
l i g h t up when up when t h e
t h e s w i t c h is s w i t c h is
Which is b r i g h t e r ?
 1.5 V D r y C e l l

12V C a r B a t t e r y 9 V Dry Cell

 o s i t i ve
el e c t r ic
 What we will Learn…
• What i s a c u r r e n t ?
• How t o d r a w e l e c t r i c circuit
diagrams
 Heating E f f e c t o f
E le c tric Current
• When an e l e c t r i c c u r r e n t f l o w s t h r o u g h
a w i r e , t h e w i r e h e a t s up. E l e c t r i c a l
e n e r g y h a s been c o n v e r t e d i n t o h e a t
e n e rg y.

• The g r e a t e r t h e r e s i s t a n c e o f t h e w i r e ,
t h e g r e a t e r t h e a m o u nt o f h e a t
p r o d u c e d . This heating e f f e c t i s us ed in
common e l e c t r i c a l appliances.

Iron Kettle Hair Dryer

A kettle uses both copper and nichrome wires.
Copper has low resistance while nichrome has high resistance.

Which material, copper or nichrome, should be used for the heating

element, and for the external wire?

Use copper wire

for the external
wire as it has low
resistance &
produces less heat

Use nichrome wire for the heating

element as it has high resistance&
produces a lot of heat
Heating E f f e c t o f
Electric Current
ARGON ( i n e r t / u n r e a c t i v e ga s )
filament wire produces
heat and light

In a l i g h t b u l b , t h e
h e ate d f i l a m e n t w h i c h is
a l s o a resistance wire,
becomes s o hot that
l i g h t is a l s o e mitte d .