Electrical Calculations
Chapter 17 Section 3
Objectives:
• Use Ohm’s Law to calculate voltage, current, and
resistance
• Calculate electrical power
• Determine the electrical energy used by a device
Connecting Current, Voltage, &
Resistance
• Ohm (1789-1854) studied the resistances of
materials
• He measured current that resulted from
different voltages applied to a piece of metal wire
• What would the graph of current vs. voltage look
like??
Ohm’s Law:
• Found that the ratio of voltage (V) to current (I)
is a constant for each material (V = I x R)
• The ratio is the resistance (R) of the material
(R = V/I)
• As the resistance goes up, the current goes down
• As the resistance decreases, the current
increases
Math Focus:
• Page 491 in text
• Using Ohm’s Law (step 1, 2)
• Now it’s your turn…#1-3
Electric Power
• The rate at which electrical energy is changed
into other forms of energy
• Unit of power is the watt (W)
• Symbol for power is (P)
• Equation: P = V x I
Watt: The Unit of Power
• Light bulbs: 60W, 75 W, 120W
• Electrical energy is supplied to the light bulb and
it glows
• As power increases, bulb burns brighter
• Electrical energy to light energy
• Kilowatt (kW) – one kW = 1000W
Measuring Electrical Energy
• Electric power companies sell electrical energy
to homes & businesses
• Cost is based on power and time
• Equation: Electrical Energy (E) = Power x time
• E=Pxt
Math Focus:
• Page 492 in text
• Power & Energy – (steps 1,2,3, 4)
• Now it’s your turn (#1-3)
Household Use Energy
• Calculate electrical energy use by multiplying
power (kW) by time (hours)
• Unit: kilowatt-hours (kWh)
• Ex: 2,000W (2kW) of power over 3 hours =
6kWh
• Meters
How to Save Energy:
• Replacing items that have higher power ratings
with items that have lower power ratings saves
energy
• Turning off lights
• Can you name some more?...
