Wattless current

Wattless current is also known as idle currents. The current which is involved in an alternating circuit(AC) is known as wattless currents, as the average power consumed in such a type of circuit corresponds to zero. In other words, the current which flows through such an electric circuit in which the power consumption is zero is known as wattless currents. 

It is generated only in an electric circuit having a single capacitor or inductor. It is so because, in inductive and capacitive electrical AC circuits, both the voltage and current differ by a phase angle of 90° or π / 2.

There is no particular formula for the calculation of wattless current as it is a special case of any AC circuit having a single capacitor or inductor. However, the presence of the wattless currents can be verified by a satisfying condition which indicates that the total consumption of the energy in a particular circuit is equal to zero.

For the verification of the presence of wattless current in a circuit, one must possess knowledge regarding the place difference between the two sinusoidal waves.

As the property of a wattless current is known, let us derive the formula for the calculation of wattless current :

P = IV cosӨ

Where,

P is the power in Watts.

I is the current in Amperes.

V is the voltage in Volts.

Ө is the phase difference between the current and voltage.

Power in AC circuits:

According to the direction of currents that flow through a circuit, it is categorized into two types which are alternating current and direct current, abbreviated as AC and DC, respectively. An electric current is called alternating current or AC when it flows in its reverse direction periodically.

On the other hand, when the current tends to flow in one direction, it is known as DC or direct current. The most helpful advantage of an alternating current is that AC voltage can easily be transformed from higher to lower voltage and from lower to higher voltage levels.

By virtue of this property of alternating current, the voltage power from the power station can be reduced to make it safer for use in domestic appliances. Only alternating current can be used with capacitors and inductors.

By using both of them in alternating current circuits, the flow of the electricity can be turned in another direction. Such properties of alternating current help tune the radio station. Because of these features of the alternating current, electricity is mostly preferred for home appliances. 

The AC circuits always have reactance, so there are two components of power, a power component due to the magnetic field and the other one is due to the electric field. The average power which is absorbed by the circuit becomes the total of power stored and returned through a complete cycle.

Thus, the average power which is consumed by the circuit is the instantaneous power within one cycle.

As the current which is flowing through a circuit and voltage are dependent on the time, the instantaneous power will also depend on time, as:

P(t) = l(t) × V(t)

Quality factor: 

The quality factor is also known as the Q factor. It is a parameter by which we come to know about the quality of an inducer. It is a dimensionless quantity that gives us details about the nature of damping in a resonating circuit.

It is actually the ratio between the maximum energy stored in a circuit to the amount of energy that is dispatched during each cycle of oscillation. When there is a higher quality factor, it will show that there is a lower rate of the loss of energy and the oscillation dying out more slowly.

Conclusion

For every circuit, whether it is a direct circuit or an alternating circuit, there is an opposition to the current flow, which is known as resistance. In other words, resistance is a measurement of the opposition to the current flow in an electric circuit. Resistance is measured in ohms. 

The resistance which is offered to an alternating current circuit is called AC resistance. For any conductor, the AC resistance is always more than DC resistance. It is so because the alternating current, while flowing through a conductor, does not distribute uniformly. Instead, it concentrates near the surface of the given conductor.

Because of this characteristic of the alternating current, the effective area of the conductor is reduced as it starts causing an increase in its resistance. 

The resistance that occurs in an alternating circuit (AC) is known as impedance.

Thus we can say that an alternating current(AC) is the current whose magnitude and direction modifies periodically, which is also the same as alternating voltage. The alternating current is widely used, especially the sinusoidal wave of the AC current is of much importance. Its production is less costly, along with the fact that it has a low waste energy transmission over large distances.

Based on the principles of mutual induction, alternating current easily transforms into other types of currents. Not only this in alternating currents, but its voltage can also be stepped up and down as per the requirements

Thus, it avoids power loss during transmission, and due to this property, it is mostly used in household appliances as it is safer than other currents.