ELECTRICAL TECHNOLOGY

LABORATORY

EXPERIMENT 1:
BASIC ELECTRICAL SYMBOLS, DRAWING,
CIRCUIT AND REGULATION

OBJECTIVES:
After this lesson, you will be able to:

1) To know the symbols of basic electrical elements.

2) To calculate the single resistance which is equivalent to a group of resistor
connected in series and parallel.
3) To calculate the single inductive reactance which is equivalent to a group of
inductors connected in series and parallel.
4) To calculate the single capacitive reactance which is equivalent to a group of
capacitors connected in series and parallel.
5) To operate Portable Double Bridge, Precision Double Bridge and multimeter to
measure an unknown resistor.

KEYWORDS:
Resistor, inductor, capacitor, series, parallel.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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1.0) INTRODUCTION

1.1) Resistor:
All materials possess electrical resistance, (opposition to the flow of electric current) to a
greater or lesser degree. Materials such as silver, copper and aluminum, which have
relatively low resistance, are called conductors, while materials such as plastics, glass, air
and rubber, which have high resistance, are called insulators. Between these two major
categories are a great variety of materials and alloys which have neither very high nor
very low resistance. There is no clear-cut dividing line between conductors and insulators.
Conductors gradually merge into resistors and resistors merge into insulators. All
materials, including conductors, have electrical resistance. A material has low electrical
resistance when it offers little opposition to the passage of an electric current. The unit of
electrical resistance is the ohm (Symbol ).

1.1.1) Resistors in series

When a group of resistors is connected in series, the total resistance is equal to the sum of
the values of the resistors. Thus, if a resistor having a resistance of 5 is connected in series
with one having a resistance of 20 , the total resistance between terminals A and B is 25
.

Figure 1
The two resistors (R1 and R2) between terminals A and B could be replaced by a single
resistor (R3) having a resistance of 25 . This single resistor (R3), which can replace the
original two, is called the equivalent resistance.

Figure 2

The equivalent resistance of a number of resistors in series is found from the

equation:
Requivalent = R1 + R2 + R3 + . . . . .

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1.1.2) Resistors in parallel
When two or more resistors are connected in parallel between two terminals A and B, the
resultant resistance is always less than that of the lowest resistor. The logic of this
statement can be shown by referring to figure 3.

Figure 3

In this circuit, a resistor of 5 (R1) is initially connected between terminals A and B. If

another resistor of 20 (R2) is connected in parallel with the 5 resistor (R1), it is clear
that the opposition to current flow between A and B will be less than before. This is so
because the current has an additional path to flow through, which was not available when
the 5 resistor (R1) was alone in the circuit. The equivalent resistance of a number of
resistors in parallel is found from the equation:

1 1 1 1
= + + + .....
Requivalent R1 R2 R3

For the particular case where only two resistors are in parallel, the single equivalent
resistance can be found from the equation:
R1 R2
Requivalent =
R1 + R2
The equivalent resistance of 20 in parallel with 5 is therefore: (5x20)/ (5+20) =4 .
Consequently, a single resistor of 4 (R3) can be used to replace the original two.

Figure 4

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1.2) Capacitor:
Capacitance is that property of an electric device which tends to prevent a change in voltage.
The basic unit of capacitance is the farad. The farad is used in equations that include
capacitance terms. However, a farad is so large a quantity that measurements are made in
microfarads (F) - one millionth of a farad. In electronic work the picofarad (pF) - one
millionth of a F is a common unit.
If a dc voltage is applied suddenly to a capacitor a large current will flow. This current will
continue to flow at a decreasing rate until the capacitor is charged (the voltage across the
capacitor equals the source voltage). The current drops to zero as soon as the capacitor
voltage stabilizes (becomes constant), that is, when the capacitor is neither charging nor
discharging. The current can be quite large if the voltage across the capacitor changes
quickly. If the source voltage increases at a rapid rate, a large current will flow into the
capacitor to charge it. Under these conditions the capacitor acts as a load. Conversely, if the
source voltage decreases at a rapid rate, a large current will flow out of the capacitor, and
the latter behaves like a momentary source of power; in fact, just like a generator.
A capacitor has the ability to store electric energy by virtue of the electric field which is
set up between its plates. The quantity of energy stored depends upon the capacitance (in
farads) and upon the square of the voltage. When a capacitor is being charged, it receives
and stores energy, but does not dissipate it. When the unit is subsequently discharged, the
stored energy will be released until the voltage across the capacitor falls to zero.
A capacitor does not dissipate electric energy, it can only store it and then release it. This is
quite different from a resistor which cannot store energy, but can only dissipate it in the
form of heat.
These facts can help us to understand the behavior of a capacitor when it is connected to an
ac power source. The ac voltage is continually increasing, decreasing and reversing its
polarity.
When the voltage increases, the capacitor stores energy, and when the voltage decreases,
the capacitor must release it. During the "storing" period, the capacitor acts as a load on the
ac power supply but during the "releasing" period, the capacitor actually returns its energy
to the source. We have the very interesting situation where the capacitor periodically acts
as a source of power returning energy to the very supply which gave it its energy in the
first place.
In an ac circuit, power flows back and forth between the capacitor and its power source
and nothing useful is accomplished. If a wattmeter is placed between the power source
and the capacitor of the circuit shown in figure 5, power will flow from left to right when
the capacitor charges, and from right to left when it discharges.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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 Figure 5
Since no power is dissipated in the capacitor, the wattmeter will indicate zero. (It actually
tries to indicate positive when power flows from left to right and negative when the power
flow reverses, but the reversal takes place so quickly that the pointer does not have time
to respond).
The active power associated with an ideal capacitor is therefore zero. There will, however,
be a voltage drop across the capacitor and current will flow in the circuit. The product of
the two is the apparent power. The current leads the voltage by 90 electrical degrees.
The reason the current leads the voltage can be easily seen. When the applied voltage is
going through its peak, the voltage for that instant is not changing hence, the current will
be zero. When the voltage is passing through zero it is changing most rapidly, hence, the
current is a maximum. Because of this unique condition, the apparent power is also called
the reactive power (var). Reactive power associated with capacitors carries a negative
sign (-).
Capacitive reactance is the resistance offered to the flow of alternating current by the
presence of capacitance in the circuit. It is measured in ohms and is equal to the ratio E/l.
Reactance also depends upon the frequency and the capacitance in farads and can be
expressed mathematically as:

1
XC =
2fC
Where;
XC = capacitive reactance in ohms
C = capacitance in farads
f = frequency in Hertz (Hz)
2 = 6.28

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The capacitance value can be found by rearranging the previous equation:

1
C =
2fXC

When two or more capacitors are connected in parallel the total capacitance is the sum of
their individual capacitances:

CT = C1 + C2 + C3 + . . . . .

When two or more capacitors are connected in series the total capacitance is found by:

1 1 1 1
= + + + .....
CT C1 C2 C3

When only two capacitors are connected in series:

C1 C2
CT =
C1 + C2

1.3) Inductors:
Inductors are frequently called chokes or coils and you should be familiar with the three
terms. Electric coils are essentially inductances designed to produce a magnetic field. The
entire electrical industry revolves, so to speak, around the electric coil. Coils are found in
motors, generators, relays and numerous other electric devices.
Inductance is that property of an electric circuit which tends to prevent a change in current.
Inductance is measured in henrys (H).
When a current flows through a coil a magnetic field is set up and this field contains energy.
As the current increases, the energy contained also increases. Conversely, when the
current diminishes, the contained energy is released, and falls to zero when the current is
zero.
The situation is analogous to the capacitor, except in a capacitor it is the voltage that
determines the amount of stored energy while in the inductor it is the current.
Consider, for example, the coil shown in the circuit of figure below. The ac power source
will cause an alternating current to flow in the coil, and this current increase,
decreases, changes its polarity and so on.
Consequently, the coil will receive energy from the source and then return it to the same
source depending upon whether the current is increasing or decreasing. In an ac circuit
power flows back and forth between the coil and the power source, without anything
useful being accomplished.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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The wattmeter will read zero, for the same reason as when we had a capacitor for a load.
An ideal (perfect) coil will, therefore, not draw any active power. The active power
associated with an ideal inductor is therefore zero. There will, however, be a voltage drop
across the coil and current will flow in the circuit. The product of the two is the apparent
power.
The current lags behind the voltage by 90 electrical degrees. For the unique case when
this happens, the apparent power E x I is also called reactive power (var).
In order to distinguish the (-) var associated with a capacitor from that of an inductor,
inductive var carries a (+) sign.
Inductive reactance is the resistance offered to the flow of alternating current by the
presence of inductance in the circuit. It is measured in ohms and is equal to the ratio of E/I.

Figure 6

Reactance also depends upon the frequency and the inductance in henrys and
can be expressed mathematically as:

XL = 2fL

Where;
XL = inductive reactance in ohms
L = inductance in henrys
f = frequency in cycles per second (Hz)
2 = 6.28

The inductance value can be found by rearranging the previous equation:

XL
L =
2f

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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When two or more inductors are connected in series the total inductance is the sum of
their individual inductances:

LT = L1 + L2 + L3 + . . . . .

When two or more inductors are connected in parallel the total inductance is found by:

1 1 1 1
= + + + .....
LT L1 L2 L3

When only two inductors are connected in parallel:

L1 L2
LT =
L1 + L2

In spite of the fact that a perfect coil would draw no active power from an ac source, we
find that in practice all coils will dissipate some active power, with the result that the
wattmeter will not read zero. This is because a coil always has some resistance and is,
therefore, subject to I2R losses. Also the iron cores associated with some coils are subject
to iron losses, which is active power.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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Section: ______________ Group: __________ Date:_______________

Name : ____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________

2.0) EXPERIMENTS

2.1) EXPERIMENT 1

2.1.1) OBJECTIVE

1) To calculate the single resistance which is equivalent to a group of resistors

connected in series and parallel.

2.1.2) PROCEDURES

1) Using the equations given in the introduction section, calculate the value of the single
equivalent resistance between terminal A and B for each of the following series and
parallel resistor circuits. Show the calculations in the space provided. Record in the
Table 1 below.

Circuit Requivalent

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Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation
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 Table 1
3.0) EXPERIMENTS

3.1) EXPERIMENT 2

3.1.1) OBJECTIVE

1) To calculate the single capacitance which is equivalent to a group of capacitors

connected in series and parallel.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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3.1.2) PROCEDURES

1) Using the equations given in the introduction section, calculate the value of the single
equivalent capacitance between terminal A and B for each of the following series and
parallel capacitor circuits. Show the calculations in the space provided.
2) Record your calculations in the Table 2 below.

Circuits Cequivalent

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 Table 2

4.0) EXPERIMENTS

4.1) EXPERIMENT 3

4.1.1) OBJECTIVE

1) To calculate the single inductance which is equivalent to a group of inductors

connected in series and parallel.

4.1.2) PROCEDURES

1) Using the equations given in the introduction section, calculate the value of the
single equivalent inductance between terminal A and B for each of the following
series and parallel inductor circuits. Show the calculations in the space provided.
2) Record your calculations in the Table 3 below.

Experiment 1: Basic Electrical Symbols, Drawing, Circuits and Regulation

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 Circuit Lequivalent

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 Table 3

5.0) EXPERIMENTS

5.1) EXPERIMENT 4

5.1.0) INSTRUMENTS AND COMPONENTS

Resistors
Portable Double Bridge
Connection Leads
Multimeter

5.1.1) OBJECTIVE

1) To measure an unknown resistor using Precision Double Bridge and Portable

Double Bridge.

5.1.2) PROCEDURES

Portable double bridge is designed for measuring low resistance from 0.1m to 110
with four multiplication plugs and one measuring dial. Follow these steps to operate the
portable Double Bridge.
1. Make sure that the internal battery terminal (INT BA) as well as the P2S terminals
are shorted securely.
2. Place the power supply toggle switch BA to OFF and open the RX terminal.
3. Set the GA sensitivity dial to CH to check the galvanometer driving battery
voltage. When the galvanometer pointer deflects to the blue zone, the battery is
good.

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 4. Set the GA sensitivity dial to G0 and check that the pointer indicates 0 on the scale.
Otherwise, do slight adjustment on the galvanometer for a true zero point.
5. Connect an unknown resistance to the RX terminal as in figure 7 below. Insert the
MULTIPLYING plug to the appropriate position using the table 4 below for the
approximate resistance value.
6. Set the measuring arm dial to G2 and turn on the BA switch. Depress the GA
switch momentarily and observe the direction of the galvanometer deflection. If
the deflection is on the + side, then increase the measuring arm dial value until
pointer approaches zero. If deflection is on the side, then reduce the dial value.
With each approach towards 0, move the GA sensitivity dial through G1 till G0
(the most sensitive option). When the pointer rests on the 0 marking and
sensitivity dial already at G0, the reading of the measuring dial is recorded.
7. The RX value is obtained through the formula standard:

RX = (indication on the measuring dial) * (multiplying factor)

8. When it is desired to measure resistance below 1m to 1m , connect a standard
resistor to the instrument as figure 8 below. The MULTIPLYING plug should be
removed. The unknown resistor, RX is calculated from this equation:

RX = dial indication * 0.01(value of standard resistor)

Resistance of measured (RX) Multiplying factor

0.1m to 1m 0.0001
1m to 10m 0.001
10m to 100m 0.01
0.1 to 10 1
10 to 110 10
Table 4

Figure 7
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 Figure 8
Using standard resistor, measure the value of these resistors using portable double bridge.
Record all the values in the table 5 below.

Standard value () Experiment value ()

0.1
10
100
Table 5

5.1.3) PROCEDURES

Multimeter is used to check the value of resistors, circuit continuity, short and open
circuit, voltage and current flowing through a circuit. In this experiment, you will be
needed to measure the values of resistors using multimeter. Follow these steps to
calibrate the multimeter.
1. Insert the red test lead into the + terminal and the black test lead into the COM
terminal.
2. Set the range selector switch to the desired range position beginning from the
smallest scale.
3. With the test lead tips shorted together, turn the zero ohm adjust knob so that the
meter pointer lines up with the zero mark at the right end of the ohm scale.
4. Turn off the power to the circuit under test.
5. Connect the test leads to both ends of the circuit under test and take the reading.
6. Repeat steps 1 to 5, each time you choose another range position to maintain the
correct calibration of the ohm scale.

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 Figure 10

Using standard resistor, measure the value of these resistors using multimeter. Record all
the values in the table 8 below.

Standard value () Experiment value ()

0.1
10
100
Table 8

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6.0) TUTORIALS

1. Connect all the resistors in parallel.

2. A capacitor having a capacitive reactance, XC of 250 draws a current of 3A

when connected to a 50Hz, 500V source. Find the value of the capacitor.

3. Calculate the inductance of a coil having an inductive reactance, XL of 1200 at

50Hz. What would reactance be at direct current source?

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