KIRCHHOFF’S CIRCUIT LAWS
TARGET AUDIENCE: 1 ST YEAR BACHELOR’S IN MEDICAL
LAB. TECHNOLOGY
Introduction
In 1845, a German physicist, Gustav Kirchhoff
developed a pair or set of rules or laws
which deal with the conservation of
current and energy within electrical circuits.
These two rules are commonly known as:
Kirchhoff’s Circuit Laws with
one of Kirchhoff’s laws dealing
with the current flowing around a closed circuit,
Kirchhoff’s Current Law, (KCL)
while the other law deals with the voltage sources
present in a closed circuit,
Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law, (KVL).
Kirchhoff’s First Law –
The Current Law, (KCL)
Kirchhoff’s Current Law or KCL, states that
the “total current or charge entering a junction or
node is exactly equal to the charge leaving the node as it
has no other place to go except to leave, as no charge is
lost within the node“.
In other words the algebraic sum of ALL the currents
entering and leaving a node must be equal to zero,
I(exiting) + I(entering) = 0.
This idea by Kirchhoff is commonly known as
the Conservation of Charge.
Kirchhoff’s Current Law
Here, the three currents
entering the node, I1, I2, I3 are all positive in value
and the two currents leaving the node, I4 and I5
are negative in value.
Then this means we can also rewrite the equation as;
I1 + I2 + I3 – I4 – I5 = 0
The term Node in an electrical circuit
generally refers to a connection or junction
of two or more current carrying paths or elements
such as cables and components.
Also for current to flow either in or out of a node
a closed circuit path must exist.
We can use Kirchhoff’s current law
when analysing parallel circuits.
Kirchhoff’s Second Law –
The Voltage Law, (KVL)
Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law or KVL, states that
“in any closed loop network, the total voltage around
the loop is equal to the sum of all the voltage drops within
the same loop” which is also equal to zero.
In other words the algebraic sum of all voltages
within the loop must be equal to zero.
This idea by Kirchhoff is known as
the Conservation of Energy.
Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law
Starting at any point in the loop
continue in the same direction
noting the direction of all the voltage drops,
either positive or negative,
and returning back to the same starting point.
It is important to maintain the same direction
either clockwise or anti-clockwise or
the final voltage sum will not be equal to zero.
We can use Kirchhoff’s voltage law
when analysing series circuits.
When analysing either DC circuits or AC circuits
using Kirchhoff’s Circuit Laws
a number of definitions and terminologies
are used to describe the parts of the circuit
being analysed such as:
node, paths, branches, loops and meshes.
These terms are used frequently in circuit analysis
so it is important to understand them.
Common DC Circuit Theory Terms:
Circuit – a circuit is a closed loop conducting path in which
an electrical current flows.
Path – a single line of connecting elements or sources.
Node – a node is a junction, connection or terminal within
a circuit where two or more circuit elements are connected
or joined together giving a connection point between two or
more branches. A node is indicated by a dot.
Branch – a branch is a single or group of components such
as resistors or a source which are connected between two
nodes.
Loop – a loop is a simple closed path in a circuit in which
no circuit element or node is encountered more than once.
Mesh – a mesh is a single closed loop series path that does
not contain any other paths. There are no loops inside a
mesh.
Note that:
Components are said to be connected together in Series if
the same current value flows through all the components.
Components are said to be connected together in
Parallel if they have the same voltage applied across
them.
A Typical DC Circuit
Kirchhoff’s Circuit Law Example No1
Find the current flowing in the 40Ω Resistor, R3
The circuit has 3 branches, 2 nodes (A and B) and 2
independent loops.
Using Kirchhoff’s Current Law, KCL the equations are
given as:
At node A : I1 + I2 = I3
At node B : I3 = I1 + I2
Using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law, KVL the equations are
given as:
Loop 1 is given as : 10 = R1 I1 + R3 I3 = 10I1 + 40I3
Loop 2 is given as : 20 = R2 I2 + R3 I3 = 20I2 + 40I3
Loop 3 is given as : 10 – 20 = 10I1 – 20I2
As I3 is the sum of I1 + I2 we can rewrite the equations as;
Eq. No 1 : 10 = 10I1 + 40(I1 + I2) = 50I1 + 40I2
Eq. No 2 : 20 = 20I2 + 40(I1 + I2) = 40I1 + 60I2
We now have two “Simultaneous Equations”
that can be reduced to give us the values of I1 and I2
Substitution of I1 in terms of I2 gives us the value of I1 as
-0.143 Amps
Substitution of I2 in terms of I1 gives us the value of I2 as
+0.429 Amps
As : I3 = I1 + I2
The current flowing in resistor R3 is given as : -
0.143 + 0.429 = 0.286 Amps
and the voltage across the resistor R3 is given as :
0.286 x 40 = 11.44 volts
The negative sign for I1 means that
the direction of current flow initially chosen was wrong,
but never the less still valid.
In fact, the 20v battery is charging the 10v battery.
Application of Kirchhoff’s Circuit Laws
These two laws enable
the Currents and Voltages in a circuit to be found,
i.e., the circuit is said to be “Analysed”,
and the basic procedure for
using Kirchhoff’s Circuit Laws is as follows:
1. Assume all voltages and resistances are given.
( If not label them V1, V2,… R1, R2, etc. )
2. Assigns a current to each branch or mesh
(clockwise or anticlockwise)
3. Label each branch with a branch current. ( I1, I2, I3 etc. )
4. Find Kirchhoff’s first law equations for each node.
5. Find Kirchhoff’s second law equations for each of the
independent loops of the circuit.
6. Use Linear simultaneous equations as required to find the
unknown currents.
References
Basic Electrical Science and Technology
by K. Murugesh Kumar
Electronics Fundamentals & Applications
by D. Chattopadhyay and P.C. Rakshit
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