Effects of Electric Current

Vocabulary flashcards covering energy transfer, Joule's law, heating effects, safety devices, and magnetic effects of electric current.

Electrical Power

The rate at which electrical energy is transferred or consumed in a circuit, calculated as $\text{P} = \frac{\text{Energy}}{\text{Time required}} = V_{AB} \times I$.

Joule's Law of Heating

The law stating that the heat produced in a resistor due to flowing electric current is given by $\text{H} = I^2 \times R \times t$.

Heating Effect of Electric Current

The production of heat in a resistor when an electric current flows through it in a circuit.

Watt ($\text{W}$)

The unit of electrical power defined as one joule per second ($1\,\text{W} = 1\,\text{J/s} = 1\,\text{Volt} \times 1\,\text{Amp}$).

Nichrome

An alloy with high resistivity used as a resistor coil in electrical heating appliances like electric heater-cookers.

Tungsten Wire

A wire used in electric bulbs that gets heated up to nearly $3400\,^\circ\text{C}$ due to electric current and emits light.

Kilowatt-hour ($\text{kWh}$)

A practical unit of electrical energy equivalent to $1000\,\text{W} \times 3600\,\text{s} = 3.6 \times 10^6\,\text{J}$.

Unit of Electrical Energy

The term used on electricity bills to measure electrical energy consumption, where $1\,\text{unit} = 1\,\text{kWh}$.

Short Circuit

A fault occurring when live and neutral wires (with a potential difference of $220\,\text{V}$) come in direct contact due to damaged insulation, causing a large current to flow and produce extreme heat.

Fuse Wire

A precautionary safety device that melts and breaks the circuit when an excessively high current flows through it.

Overloading

A condition in which excessive current is drawn from a supply transformer beyond its capacity, causing its fuse wire to melt and shut down power.

Miniature Circuit Breaker (MCB)

A switch used in modern electrical connections that automatically opens to stop current when the circuit current suddenly increases.

Magnetic Effect of Electric Current

The creation of a magnetic field surrounding a conductor when electric current flows through it, causing deflection of a nearby magnetic needle.

Hans Christian Oersted

The 19th-century scientist who observed in 1820 that a magnetic needle deflects near a current-carrying wire, establishing the relationship between electricity and magnetism.