Electrical Circuit Calculations

In summary, the conversation discusses a problem involving a cabin with two electrical appliances, a radio and a clock, being powered by a 15V battery. The task is to calculate the resistance and the electrical energy needed for the appliances to operate for 1 minute. The equation R=V/I is used to find the resistance, and it is determined that the resistor needs to have a voltage drop of 6V. The power supplied by the battery is also calculated using the equation P=VI, and the conversation concludes with a discussion about the circuit diagram and the connection between the radio and resistor.
  • #1
NavitaLaVida
17
0
[SOLVED] electrostatic physics?

Homework Statement



a cabin contains only two small electrical appliances: a radio that requires 10 milliamperes of current at 9 volts and a clock that requires 20 milliamperes at 15 volts, a 15 volt battery with negligible internal resistance supples the electrical energy to operate the radio and the clock


Calculate the resistance and calculate the electrical energy that must be supplied by the battery to operate the circuits for 1 minute

Homework Equations



R= I/V and energy= (power)(t) and power = V x I

The Attempt at a Solution



I know that the second appliance needs 9V, so you need to drop 6V across the resistor (15-9).

does that mean i plug in 9 for V to find R? then I equals 10 milliamperes which i multiply by 10^-3 to convert to amperes

and i totally don't get the second part
 
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  • #2
msg me for a picture if you think it will help you
thank you!
 
  • #3
The resistance of what exactly are you to calculate?
 
  • #4
A picture would help ;).

I cannot visualize circuit diagram from the question.
 
  • #5
rock freak: the directions only say calculate resistance, no additional details
 
  • #6
Post the picture
 
  • #7
NavitaLaVida said:
R= I/V
You'd better double-check that equation.

The Attempt at a Solution



I know that the second appliance needs 9V, so you need to drop 6V across the resistor (15-9).

does that mean i plug in 9 for V to find R?
No, plug in the voltage across the resistor R.

then I equals 10 milliamperes which i multiply by 10^-3 to convert to amperes
Yes.

and i totally don't get the second part
As a start, can you calculate the power supplied by the battery?
 
  • #8
rootX said:
A picture would help ;).

I cannot visualize circuit diagram from the question.

A resistor and a radio are connected in series.

The resistor+radio is connected in parallel with a clock.

Then, all of that is connected to the battery.
 
  • #9
Redbelly98 said:
A resistor and a radio are connected in series.

The resistor+radio is connected in parallel with a clock.

Then, all of that is connected to the battery.

ah that makes sense now...
 
  • #10
my bad, it's V/I

so 15 instead of 9? uh i really don't get how they're connected

rock freak i can't post the pic, it says I am not allowed
 
  • #11
NavitaLaVida said:
my bad, it's V/I

so 15 instead of 9?


uh i really don't get how they're connected

rock freak i can't post the pic, it says I am not allowed

The radio and resistor are in parallel with the clock. since they are in parallel they have the same pd.

so the pd across the resistor+pd across radio=15
radio uses 9 => resistor has a pd of=15-9=6V
and you know that R=V/I, can you find R now?
 
  • #12
what is pd?
is I 20 milliamperes?
 
  • #13
so i multiply 20 by 10^-3
i get .02

so then i did 6/.02 and got 300 ohms
 
  • #14
NavitaLaVida said:
my bad, it's V/I

so 15 instead of 9?
No, the number you said before:
NavitaLaVida said:
... you need to drop 6V across the resistor (15-9)

NavitaLaVida said:
what is pd?
Potential difference. It means the same thing as voltage.
 
  • #15
thanks redbelly
 
  • #16
For the resistor that is in series with a 10mA radio, to find ohms, should we use 6v/.01 or 6v/.02? My teacher gave me a whole worksheet of similar problems where you need to add a missing resistor. I don't understand whether or not we should have 20mA on the bottom. Would you use 10mA on the bottom because it needs to add to the 10mA radio?
 
Last edited:

FAQ: Electrical Circuit Calculations

1. What is electrostatics?

Electrostatics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of electric charges at rest and their interactions with other charges. It describes the behavior of electrically charged particles and the electric fields they create.

2. What is an electric field?

An electric field is a physical field that surrounds electrically charged particles and exerts a force on other charged particles within its vicinity. It is represented by a vector that shows the direction and strength of the force.

3. What is Coulomb's law?

Coulomb's law is a fundamental law of electrostatics that states the force between two point charges is directly proportional to the product of their magnitudes and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. It is expressed as F = k q1 q2 / r^2, where F is the force, q1 and q2 are the charges, r is the distance between them, and k is the Coulomb's constant.

4. What is the difference between conductors and insulators?

Conductors are materials that allow electric charges to flow freely through them, while insulators are materials that do not allow the flow of electric charges. This is due to the difference in the ability of these materials to hold on to their electrons. Conductors have loosely bound electrons, while insulators have tightly bound electrons.

5. How is electrostatics used in everyday life?

Electrostatics has many practical applications in our daily lives. Some examples include the operation of electrical appliances, the functioning of batteries, and the attraction and repulsion of materials due to static electricity. It is also used in industrial processes such as electrostatic painting and air filtration systems.

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