Maximum Power Transfer

• For any power source, the maximum power transferred from

the power source to the load is when the resistance of the
load RL is equal to the equivalent or input resistance of the
power source (Rin = RTh or RN).
– The process used to make RL = Rin is called impedance
matching.
2

2
 VTh 
p = i R =   R
L L
 R Th + RL 
Power Transfer Calculation

dp 2
 (R Th + R )
L
2
- 2R (R
L Th
+ R )
L

Th  
= V = 0
4
dR
L  (R
Th
+ R )
L 
2
(R + R ) = 2R (R + R )
Th L load Th L

R = R
L Th
 Power Transfer Calculation
Maximum power transfer
happens when the load
resistance RL is equal to
the Thevenin equivalent
resistance, RTh. To find the
maximum power delivered
to RL,
2
2
VTh R L VTh
pmax = =
2R L 2
4R L
 Application
• When developing new circuits for a known application,
optimize the power transfer by designing the circuit to have
an input resistance close to the load resistance.
• When selecting a source to power a circuit, one of the
selection criteria is to match the input impedance to the load
resistance.
Example 5
a) Find the value of RL for maximum power transfer to RL.
Determine the Thevenin Equivalent

150
V = (360) = 300V
Th
180
(150)(30)
R = = 25Ω
Th
150 + 30
So,
R = 25Ω
L
b) Calculate the maximum power that can be delivered to RL.

 
2
2 300
p = i R = (25)
L
50

p = 900W
 Superposition Theorem
The Superposition theorem states that if a linear system is
driven by more than one independent power source, the total
response is the sum of the individual responses. The following
example will show the step of finding branches current using
superpostion theorem
– The voltage across (or current through) a resistor is the
algebraic sum of all the contributions due to each source
acting alone.
– So, another way to analyze a circuit is to find the
contribution of each source individually and them add
them up at the end to get the total.
 We only consider 1 independent source at a time when
we use superposition. This means that we:
 Replace voltage sources with a wire (0 V).
 Replace current sources with an open circuit (no
current can flow).
 Dependent sources are left intact since they are
controlled by circuit variables.
 Repeat for each independent source.
 Find the total voltage or contribution by taking the
algebraic sum.
 Example :6 determine the branches current using
superposition theorem.
6 2

i1 i3
120 V i2 3 i4 4 12 A

• Solution
The application of the superposition theorem is shown in Figure
1, where it is used to calculate the branch current. We begin by
calculating the branch current caused by the voltage source of
120 V. By substituting the ideal current with open circuit, we
deactivate the current source, as shown in circuit
.
 6 v1 2

i'1 i'3
120 V i'2 i'4 4
3

• To calculate the branch current, the node voltage across the

3Ω resistor must be known. Therefore

v 1  120 v 1 v1
  =0
6 3 24
where v1 = 30 V
The equations for the current in each branch,
120  30 30
i'1 = = 15 A i'2 = = 10 A
6 3
i'3 = i'4 = 30 =5A
6 6 2

i1 " i3"
i2 " 3 i4 " 4 12 A

In order to calculate the current cause by the current source,

we deactivate the ideal voltage source with a short circuit, as
shown
To determine the branch current, solve the node voltages across
the 3Ω dan 4Ω resistors as shown in Figure 4
6 2
+ +

v3 3 v4 4 12 A

- -

v3 v3 v3  v4
  =0
3 6 2
v4  v3 v4
  12 = 0
2 4

By solving these equations, we obtain

• v3 = -12 V
• v4 = -24 V
Now we can find the branches current,
To find the actual current of the circuit, add the currents due to
both the current and voltage source,