EE 303 Electrical Circuits 2: Laboratory Experiment No.

CAPACITANCE AND CAPACITORS

Benitez, Karl S., Dela Cruz, Jose Carlo V., Kalaw, Charlie ., Maalihan, Karla Clarisse B.,
Yuzon, Mae Ann Hazel D.

benitezkarl3@gmail.com, thiefdark006@gmail.com, charliegalbo@yahoo.com

karlaclarissemaalihan27@yahoo.com, yuzonh@yahoo.com

Abstract-This experiment point of convergence is to give its reader knowledge about

capacitors and capacitance. The researchers of this case experimentally test the
operation of the capacitors in different functions and to determine the relationship
between the voltage and current in a capacitor. Through this experiment the researchers
consummate their objectives and experience that in a capacitor, current doesnt flow and
for the current able to flow its voltage must change.

Keywords-capacitor, capacitance, current, voltage


INTRODUCTION
The aim of this is experiment is to
introduce the operations of a capacitor
using the circuit trainer, to measure the
voltage and current in the capacitor using
a multimeter and determine the
relationship between them.
Capacitor is also known
as condenser. This is one of the passive
components like resistor. Capacitor is
generally used to store the charge. In
capacitor the charge is stored in the form
of electrical field. Capacitors play a major
role in many electrical and electronic
circuits. Generally, a capacitor has two
parallel metal plates which are not
connected to each other. The two plates
in the capacitor are separated by non
conducting medium. This medium is
commonly known as dielectric. There are
different types and different shapes of
capacitors available, from very small
capacitors which are used in resonance
circuits to large capacitors for stabilizing
HVDC lines. But all capacitors are doing
the same work that is storing the
electrical charge. The shape of a
Capacitor is rectangular, square, circular,
cylindrical or spherical shape. Unlike a
resistor, an ideal capacitor does not
dissipate energy. Capacitor consists of
two conductor separated by a dielectric,
when there is any potential difference
between the two conductors electric
potential is developed. This causes the
capacitor to charge and discharge.
When the capacitor is connected to a DC
source like a battery, current starts
flowing through the circuit. Thus negative
charge is accumulated on one plate and
positive charge is accumulated on the
other plate. This process continuous until
the capacitor voltage reaches supply
voltage. When the charging voltage is
equal to the supply voltage capacitor
stops charging further even though the
battery is connected. When the battery is
removed two plates will be accumulated
with positive and negative charges. Thus
the charge is stored in the capacitor. But
when the supply voltage is from an AC
source it charges and discharges
continuously .The rate of charging and
discharging depends on the frequency of
the source.[1]
Capacitors can be used to block
DC current while passing audio signals,
pulses, or alternating current, or other
time varying wave forms. This ability to
block DC currents enables capacitors to
be used to smooth the output voltages of
power supplies, to remove unwanted
spikes from signals that would otherwise
tend to cause damage or false triggering
of semiconductors or digital
components. Capacitors can also be
used to adjust the frequency response of
an audio circuit, or to couple together
separate amplifier stages that must be
protected from the transmission of DC
current. At DC a capacitor has infinite
impedance (open -circuit), at very high
frequencies a capacitor has zero
impedance (short-circuit). All capacitors
have a maximum working voltage rating,
its WV DC so select a capacitor with a
rating at least 50% more than the supply
voltage.
Capacitance is the electrical
property of a capacitor and is the
measure of a capacitors ability to store an
electrical charge onto its two plates with
the unit of capacitance being
the Farad (abbreviated to F) named after
the British physicist Michael Faraday.
Capacitance is defined as the ratio of
charge (Q) on the either plates to the
potential difference(V) between them ,
C =Q/V, equation 1
Thus current can be obtained as
I(t)=C[d(v)/d(t)] equation 2
Capacitance is defined as being
that a capacitor has the capacitance
of one Farad when a charge of one
coulomb is stored on the plates by a
voltage of one volt. Capacitance, C is
always positive and has no negative
units. However, the Farad is a very large
unit of measurement to use on its own so
sub-multiples of the Farad are generally
used such as micro-farads, nano-farads
and pico-farads.[2]
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
To experimentally test the
operation of a capacitor as a dc
blocking device.
To use a capacitor as an energy
store
To study the relationship between
voltage and current in a capacitor
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Invention History:
Capacitors are a great example to
prove the fact that even the simplest of
devices can become complex over the
years; in case of capacitors, it is nothing
more than an insulator between two
conductors and it has become pretty
complex in this 250 years of technical
evolution.
Almost all of us are familiar with
the static electric charge that is
generated by friction a phenomenon
known as triboelectricity. When you walk
on a carpeted floor, pull a transparent
tape off a role, or comb your hair on a dry
day, have you noticed that it all results in
the separation of a little amount of
positive and negative charge?
This static electricity was
discovered about more than two
millenniums earlier; however, it was not
until the mid-1700s that energy storage
properties were discovered.
The Earliest Intervention
It is hard to believe the fact that the
concept of capacitors dates back to the
sixth century BC. The ancient Greeks
had already known that pieces of amber
were capable of attracting light weight
particles after being rubbed. The earliest
known written record of charging by
friction dates back to the sixth century
BC; it was when the Greek scientist
Thales of Mileus noticed this friction.
When he rubbed amber with animal fur, it
acquired the ability to pick up small bits
of material. Amber becomes electrified
by triboelectric effect, that is, mechanical
separation, of charge in a dielectric. In
fact, the Greek word for amber is
Elektron and thus the word electricity
was born.
For approximately next 2300
years, wherever a study about electricity
occurred, somebody took two different
materials and rubbed them together to
create separate fields of positive and
negative charges. Around the year 1650
AD, Otto von Guericke constructed a
crude electrostatic generator; it was a
sulfur ball and turned the shaft quickly, he
noticed a static electric charge building
up. This experiment did not fail to inspire
the development of several forms of
friction devices that enormously helps in
the study of electricity.
A capacitor is a device for
temporarily storing electric charge. What
is considered to be the very first capacitor
was called the Leyden jar, which was
invented by Pieter van Musschenbroek in
1746 at the University of Leyden (Leiden)
in Holland. It was a glass jar wrapped
inside and out by a thin metal foil. The
outer foil was connected to the ground,
and inner foil was connected to a source
of electricity such as an electrostatic
generator. Although how it works was not
understood at the time, experimenters
discovered that the Leyden jar seemed to
store an electric charge even after it was
disconnected from the generator. Like
many early electrical devices, there was
no particular use for the Leyden jar at
first, other than to allow scientists to do a
greater variety of electrical experiments.
Benjamin Franklin, for example, used a
Leyden jar to store electricity from
lightning in his famous kite flying
experiment in 1752. By doing so he
proved that lightning was really
electricity.
Capacitors such as a Leyden jar
consist of layers made of an electrically
conducting material (such as a metal foil)
separated by layers of a non-conducting
material (glass in the case of the Leyden
jar, but it can also be wax, mica, oil,
paper, tantalum, plastic, ceramic
material, or even air). If an electrical
voltage is applied to the layers of a
capacitor, the plates will become charge,
one positively and one negatively. If the
externally applied voltage is then
approved, the plates of the capacitor
remain charged, and the presence of the
electric charge induces an electrical
potential between the plates. Todays
capacitors are used for a wide variety of
purposes in electric power systems, radio
receivers, computers and nearly other
electrical device. They range in size from
the size of a refrigerator to the
microscopic capacitors built into
integrated circuits. The capacity of the
device for storing electric charge (called
its capacitance) can be changed by
changing the area of the plates, by
increasing or decreasing their
separation, or by using different kinds of
materials for the non-conducting layers.
Capacitors are often given names
to suit their applications eg:
By pass capacitors, to short
circuit AC current, impulse noise.
Condenser, the name used
for capacitors in circuits up to the 1950s.
Tuning capacitors, also
Vacuum Variable types; to vary the
frequency of a tuned circuit.
Power Factor Correction,
used to reduce reactive currents in power
distribution networks.
Whimhurst Machine, to
generate high voltage by maintaining a
constant electrical charge, but moving
the capacitor plates farther apart to
generate very high voltages (a square
law relationship).
Radio antennas, can
exhibit capacitance (also inductance and
resistance) at certain frequencies.
Radio antennas for low
frequencies often make use of a
Capacitive Hat to achieve practical
impedance matching to transmitters.
Inventors
In 1745 the Leyden jar was
competitively invented by Ewald Jurgen
von Kleist -4 Nov 1745. Pieter van
Musschenbroek produced the first
working example in Jan 1746, with the
name coming from Leiden University. In
1747 William Watson discharges a
Leyden jar through a circuit and
comprehends electric current.
Units of Measurement
The unit of capacitance was
known as the Jar until 1872, when the
SI unit of Farad was assigned. (Other
units were assigned at this time, volt,
ampere, coulomb, ohm, and farad.) The
term capacitor only become popular
around the 1950s, and prior to that it was
known as a condenser.
All practical realizations of the
capacitor have some series resistance
which together form the equivalent
circuit used in detailed circuit analysis.
The effect of this resistances is
measured as the Loss Factor , and can
manifest itself as heating the component.
In a turned circuit, these resistances
contribute to the Q (quality) factor.[3]
Capacitor Theory
Any arrangement of two
conductors separated by an electric
insulator (i.e., dielectric) is a capacitor.
An electric charge deposited on one of
the conductors induces an equal charge
of opposite polarity on the other
conductor. As a result, an electric field
exists between the two conductor
surfaces and there is a potential
difference between them. The electric
field anywhere between the conductor
surfaces is directly proportional to the
magnitude of the charge Q on the
conductors. And the potential difference
V is also directly proportional to the
charge Q. The ratio Q/V is thus a
constant for any electric field distribution
as determined by the shape of the
conductors, the distance of separation,
and the dielectric in which the field exists.
The ratio Q/V is called the capacitance,
C, of a particular arrangement of
conductors and dielectric. Thus, C = Q/V,
where Q and V are in units of coulomb
and volt. C has the units farad (F). The
simple theoretical expression for the
capacitance value of a parallel plate
capacitor is
Equation 3
where A = plate area [m2 ] = cross section
of electric field, d = distance between
plates [m], o = permittivity of free space
= 8.854 x 10-12 F/m and r = relative
permittivity of the dielectric between the
plates [dimension less].
This calculated value is based on
the assumption that the charge density
on the plates is uniformly distributed. In
practice there is always a concentration
of charge along the edges. This charge
concentration is at the sharp corners of
the plates. Thus for a given voltage, the
actual total charge is always greater than
the theoretical total charge.[4]
MATERIALS AND METHODS
In this experiment, we used three
equipments which is the circuit trainer,
power supply and a multimeter and some
jumper pins.
Electrical Circuits trainer is a self-
contained trainer designed to introduce
the concepts of electricity circuits and
electrical switching and control systems.
Permanently mounted components are
interconnected using full size banana
plugs. Experiments cover bell and buzzer
circuits, switch and lamp circuits, relay
and control circuits, motor circuits, alarm
and detection systems and calling
circuits. The student is introduced to the
components and systems associated
with electrical careers and
occupations. The exposure provides and
interesting and motivating experience in
the electrical field for a rapid manner of
presenting a wide variety of electrical
circuits. [5]
A power supply is an electronic
device that supplies electric energy to an
electrical load. The primary function of a
power supply is to convert one form of
electrical energy to another and, as a
result, power supplies are sometimes
referred to as electric power converters.
Some power supplies are discrete,
stand-alone devices, whereas others are
built into larger devices along with their
loads. Examples of the latter include
power supplies found in desktop
computers and consumer electronics
devices. [6]
A multimeter or a multitester, also
known as a VOM (Volt-Ohm-Milliammeter),
is an electronic measuring instrument that
combines several measurement functions in
one unit. A typical multimeter can
measure voltage, current,
and resistance. Analog multimeters use
a microammeter with a moving pointer to
display readings. Digital
multimeters (DMM, DVOM) have a numeric
display, and may also show a graphical bar
representing the measured value. Digital
multimeters are now far more common due
to their cost and precision, but analog
multimeters are still preferable in some
cases, for example when monitoring a rapidly
varying value. [6]
A multimeter can be a hand-held device
useful for basic fault finding and field service
work, or a bench instrument which can
measure to a very high degree of accuracy.
They can be used to troubleshoot electrical
problems in a wide array of industrial and
household devices such as electronic
equipment, motor controls, domestic
appliances, power supplies, and wiring
systems. [6]
 Adjust Vcc (variable power supply)
to +12V. Connect jumpers J3, J5,
J8, J12 and the voltmeter between
points 1-2, to produce the circuit of
figure E13.2

Check that the voltage across the

terminals of the capacitor is equal
to 12V

. Disconnect the jumper J12 and

then immediately connect J13
Jumper pins (points to be connected
by the jumper) are arranged in groups called Observe the behaviour of LED 1
jumper blocks, each group having at least
one pair of contact points. An appropriately Turn switch S4 ON
sized conductive sleeve called a jumper, or
more technically, a shunt jumper, is slipped Disconnect jumper J13 and
over the pins to complete the circuit.Jumpers connect jumper J12
must be electrically conducting; they are
usually encased in a non-conductive block of Wait until the voltage across
plastic for convenience. This also avoids the the capacitor C4 reaches 12V
risk that an unshielded jumper will
Disconnect jumper J12 and
accidentally short out something critical
(particularly if it is dropped on a live circuit). immediately connect J13
[6]
Observe the operation of LED
Procedure: 1 again

Functioning of a capacitor Turn switch S4 OFF

Set the multimeter to AC Voltage and current relationship in

a capacitor
Connect jumpers J1, J4, J7, J11,
the voltmeter between points 1-2 Check that capacitor C4 is
and the ammeter between points uncharged (zero voltage across it
3-4 to produce the circuit of figure ): if it isnt discharge it by short-
E13.1 circuiting the capacitor terminals
with a metal conductor
Measure the voltage V across the
capacitor and the current I flowing Connect jumpers J2, J4, J6, J12,
the voltmeter between points 1-2
Disconnect the jumpers and set and the ammeter between 3- 4 to
the instruments for DC produce the circuit.
measurements
While observing the ammeter,
conductor rapidly increase the power supply
voltage to about 12 V.
Connect jumpers J2, J4, J6, J12
and repeat the previous RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
measurements, from the moment
the DC is connected In the experiment we performed
last time, we tested the operation of a
The capacitor as an energy store capacitor as a dc blocking device, test if
it stores energy, and also studies the
relationship between the current and
voltage across it. We have the Digital
multimeter, Electric circuit trainer,
jumpers and electric power supply in
doing the experiment.
After we set-up our materials, we
proceed to our experiment. On the first
part, we set the voltage supply to 24V.
Since we are using an alternating
current, the capacitor was charged up to
I = 0.72 mA and V = 23.65 V.
From the moment we
changed the supply to DC the
following values are taken. We
measure the voltage of the
capacitor and its equals to 24.17 V
and the current taken is equals to
0.93 mA.
On the next part, we adjust the
supply to 12V and also change the
designation of the jumpers according to
our manual to get another circuit
configuration. We checked first if the
capacitor has already stored energy, and
as we immediately changes the
connection of J12 to J13, we watched
how the LED suddenly lights up and then
it turned off right after an instant. Next, we
disconnect J13 and connect it back to
J12. We observed the stronger
luminosity of the LED and also noticed
that the voltage across the capacitor
increases to 12.20V. The LED lighten up
until 5s.
On the next part, we waited until
the capacitor discharges energy. After
that, we change again into another circuit
configuration. And as we observe the
ammeter and rapidly change the supply
to 12V, we also observe that the change
of current in the capacitor is not
proportional to the change of voltage.
And as we change the voltage supply to
10V, we obtain the same outcome.
And the last part, we just solve the
following questions to get the answers;
Q6: Vc = 220V , Q7: Q = 100nC and C = charge of 100mC. What is its
454.5F. capacitance?

100103
= =
220

= 4.5454104
454.5454 answer

CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATION

After the experiment, we conclude

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
that when we connect capacitor to
voltage source there will be dc current
flow in circuit as long the capacitor is fully
charged. That actually means
that capacitor blocks dc and allow ac.
The energy stored in a capacitor is
almost entirely in the electric field
produced between the plates. It
takes energy from a voltage source to
move electrons to one of the plates and
away from the other. This makes one
plate positively charged and the other
negatively charged. We saw that a led
start bright then dims in the series
because the capacitor is charging
through the led. And in capacitor, current
doesnt flow and to have current flow the
voltage must change. For a constant
voltage source capacitors act as open
circuits because theres no current flow.
The voltage across a capacitor changes
in a smooth fashion so there are no
instantaneous jumps in voltages.

Summary Questions We recommend that while using

What is the voltage across a any instruments in a laboratory
experiment take a good care of it and test
0.15F capacitor, with 33x10-
6coulomb of charge? it first before to start. Like in a circuit
trainer, check it first if it have any damage
and before changing a jumper, turn off
=
first the voltage source to prevent any
accident.
33106
= =
0.15106

=220 V answer REFERENCES

A 5F capacitor has a voltage of [1]http://www.electronicshub.org/introdu
50V. What is the charge stored? ction-to-capacitors
[2]http://www.electronics-
= = 5106 50 tutorials.ws/capacitor/cap_1.html

= 2.5104 250 answer [3]www.circuitstoday.com/capacitors-

A capacitor connected to a invention-history-and-the-story-of-
voltage of 220V has a stored leyden-jar
[4]https://ece.uwaterloo.ca/~lab100/ls1n
otes.pdf
[5]http://cesindustries.com/ces_image/la
b400.pdf
[6] www.wikipedia.com
BIOGRAPHY
John Russel A. Garcia was born on
July15, 1997 19 years of age. He lives in
Natunuan South, San Pascual, Batangas
City. He finished his Secondary
Education at Sta. Teresa College in the
year of 2014. He is currently a third year
student of Electrical Engineering at
Batangas State University.
Angelo B. Macatangay was born on
October 26, 1997 19 years of age. He
lives in Banaba West, Batangas City and
finished his Secondary Education in
Banaba West National Highschool on
2014. Currently taking up Bachelor of
Science in Electrical Engineering in
Batangas State Unversity.
Christian Angelo C. Masicat is currently
an Electrical Engineering student at
Batangas State University Alangilan
Campus. She was born on June 8, 1997
19 years of age. He finished her
Secondary Education at Mataasnakahoy
National Highschool in the year of 2013.
Emmanuel B. Palmes was born on
March 26, 1998 18 years of age. He
currently residing in Dagatan, San Jose,
Batangas City. Finished his Secondary
Education in Taysan National Highschool
on 2014. Currently studying at Batangas
State University taking up Bachelor of
Science in Electrical Engineering.
Renz E. Villanueva was born on May 14,
1998 18 years of age. He lives in
Alitagtag Batangas City. Graduated at
Alitagtag National Highschool last 2014.
Currently taking up Bachelor of Science
in Electrical Engineering at Batangas
State University.