Peak Value, Average Value and RMS Value

Peak Value
Definition: The maximum value attained by an alternating quantity during one cycle is called its
Peak value. It is also known as the maximum value or amplitude or crest value. The sinusoidal
alternating quantity obtains its peak value at 90 degrees as shown in the figure below

The peak values of alternating voltage and current is represented by Em and Im respectively.

Average Value
Definition: The average of all the instantaneous values of an alternating voltage and currents
over one complete cycle is called Average Value.

If we consider symmetrical waves like sinusoidal current or voltage waveform, the positive half
cycle will be exactly equal to the negative half cycle. Therefore, the average value over a
complete cycle will be zero.

The work is done by both, positive and negative cycle and hence the average value is determined
without considering the signs.
So, the only positive half cycle is considered to determine the average value of alternating
quantities of sinusoidal waves. Let us take an example to understand it.

Divide the positive half

cycle into (n) number of equal parts as shown in the above figure

Let i1, i2, i3…….. in be the mid ordinates

The Average value of current Iav = mean of the mid ordinates

R.M.S Value
Definition: That steady current which, when flows through a resistor of known resistance for a
given period of time than as a result the same quantity of heat is produced by the alternating
current when flows through the same resistor for the same period of time is called R.M.S or
effective value of the alternating current.

In other words, the R.M.S value is defined as the square root of means of squares of
instantaneous values.
Let I be the alternating current flowing through a resistor R for time t seconds, which produces
the same amount of heat as produced by the direct current (Ieff). The base of one alteration is
divided into n equal parts so that each interval is of t/n seconds as shown in the figure below.

Let i1, i2, i3,………..in

be the mid ordinates

Then the heat produced in

Since Ieff is considered as the effective value of this current, then the total heat produced by this
current will be

Now, equating equation (1) and (2) we will get

Ieff = square root of mean of squares of instantaneous values = R.M.S value

Root Mean Square is the actual value of an alternating quantity which tells us an energy transfer
capability of an AC source.

The ammeter records the RMS value of alternating current and voltmeter record’s the root mean
square (R.M.S) value of alternating voltage. The domestic single-phase AC supply is 230 V, 50
hertz, where 230 V is the R.M.S value of alternating voltage.

The values of voltage and the current system in a DC circuit is constant, so there is no issue in
evaluating their magnitudes, but in an AC system, the alternating voltage and current vary from
time to time and hence it is necessary to evaluate their magnitudes.

The following three ways (peak value, Average value and R.M.S value) given above are adopted
to express the magnitude of the voltage and current.

Form Factor
Definition: The ratio of the root mean square value to the average value of an alternating
quantity (current or voltage) is called Form Factor. The average of all the instantaneous values
of current and voltage over one complete cycle is known as the average value of the alternating
quantities.

Mathematically, it is expressed as:

Ir.m.s and Er.m.s are the roots mean square values of the current and the voltage respectively, and
Iav and Eav are the average values of the alternating current and the voltage respectively.

For the current varying sinusoidally, the Form Factor is given as:
 The value of Form Factor is 1.11

There is a relation between the peak value, the average value, and the root means square (R.M.S)
value of an alternating quantity. Therefore, to express the relationship between all these three
quantities, the two factors are used, namely as Peak Factor and Form Factor.

The Form Factor for the various sinusoidal waveforms are as follows:

 For a sine wave, it is π/2√2 = 1.11072073

 For a half-wave rectified sine wave, it is π/2 = 1.5707963
 For a full-wave rectified sine wave, it is π/2√2 = 1.11072073
 For a square wave, it is equal to 1
 For triangle waveform, it is 2/√3 = 1.15470054
 For sawtooth waveform, it is 2/√3 = 1.15470054

Peak Factor
Definition: Peak Factor is defined as the ratio of maximum value to the R.M.S value of an
alternating quantity. The alternating quantities can be voltage or current. The maximum value is
the peak value or the crest value or the amplitude of the voltage or current.

The root mean square value is the amount of heat produced by the alternating current will be
same when the direct supply of current is passed through the same resistance in the same given
time.

Mathematically it is expressed as:

Where,
Im and Em are the maximum value of the current and the voltage respectively, and Ir.m.s and Er.m.s are
the roots mean square value of the alternating current and the voltage respectively.

For the current varying sinusoidally, the peak factor is given as:
The value of Peak Factor is 1.4142

Pure Resistive AC Circuit

The circuit containing only a pure resistance of R ohms in the AC circuit is known as Pure
Resistive AC Circuit. The presence of inductance and capacitance does not exist in a purely
resistive circuit. The alternating current and voltage both move forward as well as backwards in
both the direction of the circuit. Hence, the alternating current and voltage follows a shape of the
Sine wave or known as the sinusoidal waveform.

In the purely resistive circuit, the power is dissipated by the resistors and the phase of the voltage
and current remains same i.e., both the voltage and current reach their maximum value at the
same time. The resistor is the passive device which neither produce nor consume electric power.
It converts the electrical energy into heat.

Explanation of Resistive Circuit

In an AC circuit, the ratio of voltage to current depends upon the supply frequency, phase angle,
and phase difference. In an AC resistive circuit, the value of resistance of the resistor will be
same irrespective of the supply frequency.

Let the alternating voltage applied across the circuit be given by the equation

Then the instantaneous value of current flowing through the resistor shown in the figure below
will be:
The value of current will be maximum when ωt= 90° or sinωt = 1

Putting the value of sinωt in equation (2) we will get

Phase Angle and Waveform of Resistive Circuit

From equation (1) and (3), it is clear that there is no phase difference between the applied voltage
and the current flowing through a purely resistive circuit, i.e. phase angle between voltage and
current is zero. Hence, in an AC circuit containing pure resistance, the current is in phase with
the voltage as shown in the waveform figure below.
 Waveform and Phasor Diagram of Pure Resistive Circuit

Power in Pure Resistive Circuit

The three colours red, blue and pink shown in the power curve or the waveform indicate the
curve for current, voltage and power respectively. From the phasor diagram, it is clear that the
current and voltage are in phase with each other that means the value of current and voltage
attains its peak at the same instant of time, and the power curve is always positive for all the
values of current and voltage.

As in DC supply circuit, the product of voltage and current is known as the Power in the circuit.
Similarly, the power is the same in the AC circuit also, the only difference is that in the AC
circuit the instantaneous value of voltage and current is taken into consideration.

Therefore, the instantaneous power in a purely resistive circuit is given by the equation shown
below:

Instantaneous power, p= vi
 The average power consumed in the circuit over a complete cycle is given by

As the valve of cosωt is zero.

So, putting the value of cosωt in equation (4) the value of power will be given by

Where,

 P – average power
 Vr.m.s – root mean square value of supply voltage
 Ir.m.s – root mean square value of the current

Hence, the power in a purely resistive circuit is given by:

The voltage and the current in the purely resistive circuit are in phase with each other having no
phase difference with phase angle zero. The alternating quantity reaches their peak value at the
interval of the same time period that is the rise and fall of the voltage and current occurs at the
same time.
Pure inductive Circuit
The circuit which contains only inductance (L) and not any other quantities like resistance and
capacitance in the circuit is called a Pure inductive circuit. In this type of circuit, the current
lags behind the voltage by an angle of 90 degrees.

The inductor is a type of coil which reserves electrical energy in the magnetic field when the
current flow through it. The inductor is made up of wire which is wound in the form of a coil.
When the current flowing through inductor changes then time-varying magnetic field causes emf
which obstruct the flow of current.The inductance is measured in Henry.The opposition of flow
of current is known as the inductive reactance.

Explanation and Derivation of Inductive Circuit

The circuit containing pure inductance is shown below:

Let the alternating voltage applied to the circuit is given by the equation:

As a result, an alternating current i flows through the inductance which induces an emf in it. The
equation is shown below:
The emf which is induced in the circuit is equal and opposite to the applied voltage. Hence, the
equation becomes,

Putting the value of e in equation (2) we will get the equation as

Integrating both sides of the equation (3), we will get

where, XL = ω L is the opposition offered to the flow of alternating current by a pure inductance
and is called inductive reactance.

The value of current will be maximum when sin (ωt – π/2) = 1

Therefore,

Substituting this value in Im from the equation (5) and putting it in equation (4) we will get

Phasor Diagram and Power Curve of Inductive Circuit

The current in the pure inductive AC circuit lags the voltage by 90 degrees. The waveform,
power curve and phasor diagram of a purely inductive circuit is shown below

Phasor Diagram and Waveform of Pure Inductive Circuit

The voltage, current and power waveform are shown in blue, red and pink colours respectively.
When the values of voltage and current are at its peak as a positive value, the power is also
positive and similarly, when the voltage and current give negative waveform the power will also
become negative. This is because of the phase difference between voltage and current.

When the voltage drops, the value of the current changes. When the value of current is at its
maximum or peak value of the voltage at that instance of time will be zero, and therefore, the
voltage and current are out of phase with each other by an angle of 90 degrees.

The phasor diagram is also shown on the left-hand side of the waveform where current (Im) lag
voltage (Vm) by an angle of π/2.

Power in Pure Inductive Circuit

Instantaneous power in the inductive circuit is given by

Hence, the average power consumed in a purely inductive circuit is zero.

The average power in one alteration, i.e., in a half cycle is zero, as the negative and positive loop
is under power curve is the same.

In the purely inductive circuit, during the first quarter cycle, the power supplied by the source, is
stored in the magnetic field set up around the coil. In the next quarter cycle, the magnetic field
diminishes and the power that was stored in the first quarter cycle is returned to the source.

This process continues in every cycle, and thus, no power is consumed in the circuit.
Pure Capacitor Circuit
The circuit containing only a pure capacitor of capacitance C farads is known as a Pure
Capacitor Circuit. The capacitors stores electrical power in the electric field, their effect is
known as the capacitance. It is also called the condenser.

The capacitor consists of two conductive plates which are separated by the dielectric medium.
The dielectric material is made up of glass, paper, mica, oxide layers, etc. In pure AC capacitor
circuit, the current leads the voltage by an angle of 90 degrees.

When the voltage is applied across the capacitor, then the electric field is developed across the
plates of the capacitor and no current flow between them. If the variable voltage source is
applied across the capacitor plates then the ongoing current flows through the source due to the
charging and discharging of the capacitor.

Explanation and derivation of Capacitor Circuit

A capacitor consists of two insulating plates which are separated by a dielectric medium. It stores
energy in electrical form. The capacitor works as a storage device, and it gets charged when the
supply in ON and gets discharged when the supply is OFF. If it is connected to the direct supply,
it gets charged equal to the value of the applied voltage.
 Circuit Diagram of pure Capacitor Circuit

Let the alternating voltage applied to the circuit is given by the equation:

Charge of the capacitor at any instant of time is given as:

Current flowing through the circuit is given by the equation:

Putting the value of q from the equation (2) in equation (3) we will get
Now, putting the value of v from the equation (1) in the equation (3) we will get

Where Xc = 1/ωC is the opposition offered to the flow of alternating current by a pure capacitor
and is called Capacitive Reactance.

The value of current will be maximum when sin(ωt + π/2) = 1. Therefore, the value of maximum
current Im will be given as:

Substituting the value of Im in the equation (4) we will get:

Phasor Diagram and Power Curve

In the pure capacitor circuit, the current flowing through the capacitor leads the voltage by an
angle of 90 degrees. The phasor diagram and the waveform of voltage, current and power are
shown below:
 Phasor Diagram and Waveform of Pure Capacitor Circuit

The red colour shows current, blue colour is for voltage curve, and the pink colour indicates a
power curve in the above waveform.

When the voltage is increased, the capacitor gets charged and reaches or attains its maximum
value and, therefore, a positive half cycle is obtained. Further when the voltage level decreases
the capacitor gets discharged, and the negative half cycle is formed.

If you examine the curve carefully, you will notice that when the voltage attains its maximum
value, the value of the current is zero that means there is no flow of current at that time.

When the value of voltage is decreased and reaches a value π, the value of voltage starts getting
negative, and the current attains its peak value. As a result, the capacitor starts discharging. This
cycle of charging and discharging of the capacitor continues.

The values of voltage and current are not maximised at the same time because of the phase
difference as they are out of phase with each other by an angle of 90 degrees.
The phasor diagram is also shown in the waveform indicating that the current (Im) leads the
voltage (Vm) by an angle of π/2.

Power in Pure Capacitor Circuit

Instantaneous power is given by p = vi

Hence, from the above equation, it is clear that the average power in the capacitive circuit is
zero.

The average power in a half cycle is zero as the positive and negative loop area in the waveform
shown are same.

In the first quarter cycle, the power which is supplied by the source is stored in the electric field
set up between the capacitor plates. In the another or next quarter cycle, the electric field
diminishes, and thus the power stored in the field is returned to the source. This process is
repeated continuously and, therefore, no power is consumed by the capacitor circuit.