BASIC ELECTRICITY

INTRODUCTION:
Can you recall that the particles of atom are electron, proton
and neutron?
the electrons can flow through any material, but does so
more easily in some material than in others. The flow of these
electron is called electricity. We shall study the materials whose
electrons can move freely and otherwise, the path through
which the electrons pass, the instruments used to measure the
electricity and solve some numerical problems such as amount
of current, resistance etc.
 DEFINITION OF CURRENT
Current is the steady flow of electricity in a material. Metals are good conductors of
electricity, that is, their electrons can move easily hence, current flow through
them. Examples are:
Silver
Copper
Aluminium
Iron etc
Materials that behave in the opposite way of metals are called non-metals. Non-
metals are poor conductors of electricity (insulators). Examples are:
Rubber
Plastic
Cotton etc
 TYPES OF CURRENT
There are two types of current;
1. Direct current (D.C): This is when the current only flow in
one direction. Examples of D.C are batteries, solar cells,
electrical machines like dynamo, thermocouples etc
2. Alternating current (A.C): It is an electric current that
changes its direction at intervals. Examples are audio and
radio signals carried on electrical wires.
NOTE: Direct current can be changed to alternating current
with the use of an electronic device called inverter. While the
device used to produce alternating current is called
alternator
 DEFINITION OF ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
An electric circuit is a closed conducting path or line made of wires that
electrons can flow through.

An electric circuit may be open or closed. When an electric circuit is

open, electrons will not flow but when an electric circuit is closed,
electrons flow.
In an electric circuit, this conducting path must start and end at the same
point. This means, a circuit must form a loop.
 COMPONENTS OF AN ELECTRIC CIRCUIT AND SYMBOLS

A simple electric circuit consists of a battery, a switch, a resistor,

a wire, and electric bulb, a voltmeter and an ammeter.
The battery supplies the energy needed in the circuit and the
energy supplied is measured in Joules (J).
The force that moves the electrons round the circuit is called the
potential difference (P.d) and is measured in volts (V).
The switch is used to control the flow of free electrons.
Resistance is the opposition to the flow of electric current. It is
measured in ohms (Ω)
 MEASURING INSTRUMENT AND THEIR USES
1 AMMETER Measures current

2 OHMMETER Measures the resistance of a component

3 MULTIMETER Measures voltage, current and resistance

4 ELECTRICITY METER (WATTHOUR METER) Measures the amount of energy consumed

5 WATTMETR Measures the power

6 VOLTMETER Measures the potential difference between two

points in a circuit
 TYPES OF ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Basically, we have two types of circuit, they are:
1. Series connection
2. Parallel connection

Two resistors are connected in series if they are connected end to end.

Resistors in Series R1 + R2 + R3 + … Rn

Two resistors are connected in parallel if they are connected across each other.
Resistors in Parallel: 1/R = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + … 1/Rn
 SIMPLE ELECTRICAL CALCULATIONS
Resistance (R) Formula
Resistance in seriesR1 + R2 + R3 + … Rn

Resistance in parallel 1/R = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + … 1/Rn

Where R = Total resistance

R1 = Resistor 1

R2 = Resistor 2

R3 = Resistor 3

Rn = Resistor n
 CALCULATIONS ON RESISTANCE
1. Calculate the total resistance if three resistors of 3 ohms each are connected in
series.
Solution
Total resistance = R1 + R2 + R3 + … Rn
R=3+3+3
R= 9ohms
2. Calculate the total resistance if three resistors of 3 ohms are connected in parallel
Solution
Total resistance = 1/R = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + … 1/Rn
1/R = 1/3 + 1/3 + 1/3
1/R = 1+1+1/3
1/R = 3/3
1/R = 1 ohm
There is a relationship among resistance, voltage and current. This is called ohms
law i.e V = IR or I = V/R
Ohm’s law states that for any circuit, the electric current is directly proportion to
the voltage and inversely proportional to the resistance.
Where R = Resistance, which is constant
I = Current
V = Voltage
Calculation the current, if voltage across the battery is 12 volts and resistance is 4
ohms.
Solution
Current = Voltage/Resistance
= 12/4
= 3 Amperes
 quiz
1. Calculate the total resistance if three resistors of 2 ohms each are connected in
parallel.

2. If a voltage across the battery is 21 volts and the resistance is 6 ohms. What is
the current passed?

3. The voltage supplied to a water pumping machine is 180 V. If the machine

draws current of 4.2 A to work, what is its resistance?