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Electric Circuits 1
RESISTANCE
-The physical property of an element or device that impedes the flow of current.
-It may be defined as the property of a substance/element due to which it opposes (or restricts) the
flow of electricity through it
-Measured in ohm’s (Ω)
Law of Resistance
RESISTANCE
Law of Resistance
The resistance R offered by a conductor depends on the following factors:
- It varies directly as its length L when cross section A is constant
- It varies inversely as the cross-section A of the conductor when length is constant
- Resistance of a conductor depends on the nature of material
𝐿
𝑅= 𝜌𝐴 𝑖𝑛 𝑜ℎ𝑚𝑠 (Ω)
where: 𝑳 is the length in meters, A is the cross sectional area of a conductor in square meters, and 𝝆 is
the resistivity of a material in ohm-meter (Ω-m)
Note: If a given conductor has undergone processing(drawing/die casting), its volume will remain the
same however, its diameter and length will change.
Cross-sectional area (A) in
Circular Mil (CM)
Cross-sectional area (A) in Circular Mil (CM)
Circular Mil (CM) – The area contained within a circle having a diameter (d) of 1 mil.
(1 mil = 0.001 inch)
𝝅𝒅𝟐
Acircle=
𝟒
Conversion
𝝅 𝟒
1 CM = square mil; 1 square mil = 𝐂𝐌
𝟒 𝝅
ACM=𝒅𝟐 ; 𝒅 is in mils
1 MCM = 1000 CM 1 inch= 1000 mils
AMERICAN WIRE GAUGE
(AWG)
AMERICAN WIRE GAUGE (AWG)
AWG is an index which shows the cross-sectional area of a round wire. AWG
assigns numbers only to aluminium, copper, and other non-iron or non-steel
wires. Most frequently applied to copper
Equivalent Equivalent
AWG AWG
Sizes (mm²) Sizes (mm²)
14 AWG 2.0 mm² 4 AWG 22 mm²
12 AWG 3.5 mm² 2 AWG 30 mm²
10 AWG 5.5 mm² 1 AWG 38 mm²
8 AWG 8.0 mm² 1/0 AWG 50 mm²
6 AWG 14 mm² 2/0 AWG 60 mm²
source:https://phelpsdodge.com.ph/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/COPPER-BUILDING-WIRE-TYPE-THHNTHWN
Resistivity of Materials at 20ºC
Resistivity of Materials at 20ºC
Resistivity (Specific resistance) is a resistive property depending on the type
of conductor. Measured in ohm-m (Ω-m).
Material Ohm-m (Ω-m) Ohm-CM/ft
Aluminum 𝟐. 𝟖𝟑𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 17
Annealed
𝟏. 𝟗𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 10.37
Copper
Hard-Drawn
𝟏. 𝟕𝟕𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 10.66
Copper
Silver 𝟏. 𝟔𝟓𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 9.8
Gold 𝟐. 𝟒𝟒𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 14.7
Tungsten 𝟓. 𝟒𝟗𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟖 33.2
Example
1) Determine the resistance of an AWG 16 copper wire at 20ºC if the wire has a
diameter of 0.0508 inch and a length of 400 feet..
2) Determine the resistance of 1 mile of AWG 19 copper wire at 20ºC, if the cross-
sectional area is 1290 CM.
3) An aluminium conductor having a cross sectional area of 1843 MCM is used to
transmit power from a high voltage dc generating station to a large urban center. If
the city is 900 km from the generating station, determine the resistance of the
conductor at a temperature of 20ºC.
Example
4) A copper wire of unknown length has a resistance of 0.8 Ω. By successful
passes through drawing dies, the length of the wire is increased to 2.5 time its
original value. Determine the new value of the resistance.
5) A piece of silver wire has a resistance of 1Ω. What will be the resistance of
manganin wire of one third the length and one third the diameter, if the specific
resistance of manganin is 30 time that of silver.
6) A piece of wire of cross-sectional area 2mm2 has a resistance of 300 Ω.
Find the resistance of a wire of the same length and material if the cross-
sectional area is 5mm2 .
Resistance due to temperature
Resistance due to temperature
-The resistance of all wires generally used in electrical systems increases as
the temperature is raised.
Inferred Absolute Temperature
Inferred Absolute Temperature (T)