NALTC Basic Electricity

Open Circuit

interruption of the complete path needed for current to flow in a circuit

Ohm

measure for electrical resistance

Watt

measure of electrical power, one watt is produced when one amp flows through one volt of POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE

Volt

measurement for pressure, measure of electromotive force

Frequency

number of times a generator rotates in one second

Resistance

opposition to current flow in an electrical circuit

Induction

process by which current flows through a conductor when passed through a magnetic field

Current

rate of flow of electrons, measured in amps

Amp

short for ampere, quantity of electrons flowing past a given point in a given time (current)

what causes an open circuit

a broken phase or a neutral

short cuircuit

a circuit that does not have a load or the load has been bypassed

Parallel Circuit

a circuit that has multiple paths for current to flow

Series Circuit

a circuit with only one path for current to flow

Load

a device that uses the electrical energy of its source to accomplish some useful purpose

Lightning

a naturally occurring discharge of static electricity

Ohms Law

describes the mathematical relationship between voltage (pressure), amperage (current), and resistance (ohms). It takes one volt of pressure to push one amp of current through one ohm of resistance (E/IR)

Conductor

any material that readily allows the flow of electrical current

Insulator

any material that resists the flow of electrical current