INDEX

1.Certification
2.Acknowledgements
3.General Introduction
4.Experiment

1.Aim
2.Materials Required
3.Theory
5.Circuit Diagram
6.Procedure
10.Result
11.Precautions

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 General Introduction To The Project

This project is based on the analysis of a simple RC circuit and how the
voltages across its components vary with time. A resistor–capacitor
circuit (RC circuit), or RC filter or RC network, is an electric circuit
composed of resistors and capacitors driven by a voltage or current
source. A first order RC circuit is composed of one resistor and one
capacitor and is the simplest type of RC circuit.

In this project, the focus is on slow RC circuits, the ones in which

charging and discharging of the capacitor take place in a notable amount
of time. This makes it possible for the human eye to observe the changes
in the voltage and derive results from the readings. The various technical
terms and formulae have been explained in detail in the project’s theory.

The project aims to experimentally determine the time constant of an RC

circuit and verify the results with existing formulae. Using the values
obtained, the maximum charge on the capacitor shall be determined and
the capacitor’s charging and discharging shall be represented graphically.

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 EXPERIMENT

Aim

To experimentally determine the time constant of a slow RC

circuit and verify the value using the actual formula.

To calculate the maximum charge attained by the capacitor,

i.e. the charge attained by it in steady state.

To graphically represent the charging and discharging of the capacitor

using the values obtained.

Materials Required

A Battery Eliminator of 10 V
An Electrolytic Capacitor of 100 F
A Carbon Resistor of 220 k
A Voltmeter
A Two-Way Switch
Connecting Wires
Stopwatch

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 Theory
Resistor :

A resistor is a passive two-terminal electrical component that

implements electrical resistance as a circuit element.

The current through a resistor is in direct proportion to the voltage

across the resistor's terminals.

Thus, the ratio of the voltage applied across a resistor's terminals to

the intensity of current through the circuit is called resistance.

The SI unit of resistance is Ohm (

This relation is represented by Ohm's law:

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Capacitor :

A capacitor (originally known as condenser) is a passive two-terminal

electrical component used to store energy in an electric field.

The forms of practical capacitors vary widely, but all contain at least
two electrical conductors separated by a dielectric (insulator).

One common construction consists of metal foils separated by a thin

layer of insulating film.

Capacitors are widely used as parts of electrical circuits in many

common electrical devices.

The SI unit of Capacitance is Farad (F).

Capacitors are mainly of two types: Electrolytic capacitors and Non-

Electrolytic capacitors.

The Capacitance of a capacitor is given by

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 Types Of Capacitors :
Non - Electrolytic Capacitors:
Non-Electrolytic capacitors are non-polarized, i.e. they can be connected
either way in a circuit without having to worry about + & -. The most
common is the disc-type capacitor that we normally use in electronics.
The other types are ceramic, mica etc. In almost all applications we use
the disc-type capacitor which is brown in color and has the shape of a
disc. Its value ranges between about a few pF to as high as 1uF.

Electrolytic Capacitors:
Electrolytic capacitors are polarized and they are supposed to be
connected in a specific way in the circuit. Their + and
- terminals have to coincide with that specified in the circuit. They are
much bulkier than the non-electrolytic type and hence have to be avoided
when possible. They are used only if very high capacitance values are
needed. Also the electrolytic capacitors are not very stable regarding
their value i.e. their values change slightly with the temperature and
other physical parameters. The non- electrolytic capacitors are relatively
more stable. Electrolytic capacitors are available usually 1uF and
upwards up to about 4700uF. They are much costlier than the non-
electrolytic capacitors. Connecting an electrolytic capacitor in the wrong
polarity may lead to an explosion

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CIRCUIT
DIAGRAM

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 Procedure
Obtain the components required for the circuit.
Clean the ends of the connecting wires with a sand paper.
Connect the +ve terminal of the battery eliminator E to the common end
of two way switch S.
Connect the -ve terminal of E to the shorter leg of the electrolytic
capacitor C.
Draw a wire from the one of the ends of S and join it to the above wire to
form a junction.
Connect a wire from the capacitor side of this junction to ground ( 0
Volts ).
Connect a wire from the longer leg of the capacitor to the resistor R.
Connect the other end of R to the remaining end of S.
Connect the Voltmeter, V, in parallel across C to complete the circuit.
To start the experiment, turn S to the upper position and switch on E.
Wait till the voltmeter reaches a steady value. Note that this value will be
equal to 10V, the voltage provided by E. When this happens, the
capacitor is said to be in steady state.

Once the capacitor is fully charged, turn S to the lower position and start
the stopwatch.

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As the capacitor discharges through ground, the reading in V1 reduces
gradually. As the reading in V reaches a value of E (.368), stop the
stopwatch and note its reading. This is the value of one time constant.
Turn S to the upper position again and start the stopwatch.
Note the time when V displays a voltage of E (.632). This is the value of
one time constant taken while charging. Both the observed values should
be about the same.
Repeat discharging and charging three more times to get a total of 8
readings for the time constant. Note them in the observations table, and
find their average to compute
Calculate the theoretical value of from RC and find the percentage
error in computing the experimental
To find the maximum value of charge stored in C, multiply the voltage
observed at steady state with the capacitance.
Find the percentage error again after calculating the actual value from
CE.
Repeat the charging and discharging processes to obtain the voltage
values at 6 different time values for each.
Plot these on graph paper.

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Graph
Take two graph sheets and mark voltage (in volts) along the y-axis, and
time (in seconds) along the x-axis.
Plot the readings under charging in one and discharging on the other.
Join the plotted points with a smooth freehand curve.
Both the graphs should be exponential in nature.

Observations

Instruments Used -

Voltage supplied = …………… V (d.c) Least Count of Voltmeter = V

Least Count of Stopwatch = s
Capacitance of Capacitor Used = F
Resistance of Resistor Used =k

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 Result
Within Experimental Limits the Time Constant of the given slow RC
circuit has been determined as s,
with a percentage experimental error of ……………. .

The Maximum Charge on the Capacitor has been determined as C.

The charging and discharging of the capacitor were represented

graphically and both the graphs turned out to be exponential in nature.

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 Precautions
The insulation from the ends of the connecting wires must be removed
properly and the ends must be cleaned with sandpaper.

All connections must be ensured to be tight.

Readings involving the use of a stopwatch must be taken carefully and

accurately.

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