Fundamental

Principles
in DC Circuits
-MMARTIN
RESISTANCE
Electric Resistance (R) – it is the property of a material that limits the amount of flow of current and converts
electric energy to heat energy. Its unit is the Ohm (Ω) named in honor of the German Physicist Georg Simon
Ohm (1787 – 1854).
Factors affecting resistance:
1. Nature of the material
2. Length of the material
3. Cross-sectional area of the material
4. Temperature

Where: R = resistance of the material

A = cross-sectional area of the material
ρ = resistivity or specific resistance of the material
L = length of the material
V = volume of the material
Resistivity – it is the resistance offered to a current if passed between the opposite faces of a unit cube of the
material. It is measured in ohm-m.
Sample Problems
1.A coil consists of 2,000 turns of copper wire having a cross-sectional
area of 0.8 mm2. The mean length per turn is 80 cm and the resistivity of
copper is 0.02 μΩ-m. Find the resistance of the coil.

Solution:
Sample Problems
2.A heater element is made of nichrome wire having resistivity equal to
100 x 10-8 Ω-m. The diameter of the wire is 0.4 mm. Calculate the length
of the wire required to get a resistance of 40 Ω.

Solution:
Sample Problems
3.The resistance of a conductor 1 mm2 in cross-section and 20 m long is 0.346 Ω.
Determine the specific resistance of the conductor material.

Solution:
 Sample Problems
4.A wire of length 1 m has a resistance of 2 Ω. Obtain the resistance if specific
resistance is doubled, diameter is doubled and the length is made three times of the
first.

Solution:

Dividing eq. (2) by (1)

Sample Problems
5.Determine the resistivity of the material of conductor of volume 0.05 m3,
length 300 meters and resistance 0.0306 Ω.

Solution:
 EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE IN
RESISTANCE
The effect of variations of temperature on the
resistance of all materials is generally are as
follows:
• Resistance of most of the metallic
conductors usually increases with rise in
temperature.
• Resistance of non-conductors or insulator
usually decreases with rise in
temperature.

Where:
R2 = resistance at temperature t2, Ω
R1 = resistance at temperature t1, Ω
t1 = initial temperature, °C
t2 = final temperature, °C
T = inferred zero resistance, °C
= temperature when resistance of a certain
material is zero
α = temperature coefficient of resistance, /°C
= increase in resistance per ohm per °C rise in
temperature
α0 = temperature coefficient of resistance at 0°C
 Sample Problems
1. A copper conductor has its specific resistance of 1.6 x 10-6 ohm-cm at
0°C and a resistance temperature coefficient of 1/254.5 per °C at 20°C.
Find (a) the specific resistance and (b) the resistance temperature
coefficient at 60°C.

Solution:
(a) For the specific resistance at 60°C
(b) For the resistance temperature coefficient at 60°C
Sample Problems
2. Two coils connected in series have resistances of 600 Ω and 300 Ω with
temperature coefficient of 0.1% and 0.4% respectively at 20°C. (a) Find the
resistance of the combination at a temperature of 50°C. (b) What is the
effective temperature coefficient of the combination?

Solution:

(a) For the resistance of the combination at a temperature of 50°C

Sample Problems
Solution:

(b) For the effective temperature coefficient of the combination

Sample Problems
3. Two materials A and B have resistance temperature coefficients of
0.004 and 0.0004 respectively at a given temperature. In what
proportion must A and B be joined in series to produce a circuit having
a temperature coefficient of 0.001?

Solution: