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Comments on What reactance actually is?

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What reactance actually is?

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I saw that equation of reactance is written like this $$I=\frac{V}{|R+X_L j|}$$ $$I=\frac{V}{|R-X_c j|}$$ When there's capacitor and inductor in a single circuit then it is written like : $$I=\frac{V}{Z}$$

Where $Z$ represents impedance. But here we used different equation for the same "term (reactance)", they are actually called capacitive reactance and inductive reactance. Do we use the "reactance" term just to represent obstacle of electrical flow just like resistance? If not, than what is reactance?

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Reactance is the lossless part of impedance that stores and releases energy E=1/2 LI^2 or 1/2CV^2 . Much like a spring stores energy when compressed or expanded.

L is a conductor that stores current with charges flowing. Q=LI.

C is an insulator with some dielectric constant , Dk, relative to air measured with stationary charges Q=CV.

Losses are maybe modelled in series as DCR in L, or ESR in C when current flows with a source and/or load. Without this there may be a shunt leakage loss in C. For L as a conductor, such parallel R might be the work done by any moving solenoid or motor as P=V^2\R such that with no load or friction it is inductive mainly and only if you exclude DCR.

All conductors have inductance per unit length and increases when coiled and amplified when near high permeability material. Since conductors have insulation around them , they also have capacitance to the nearest conductor. Reactive or "characteristic" impedance is known here as Zo=sqrt(L/C) . This applies equally to lumped parts and "all "Transmission Lines", coax,CAT5, UTP etc...

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It is interesting to ask such a question, "What is across a capacitor - voltage or voltage drop?" (4 comments)
It is interesting to ask such a question, "What is across a capacitor - voltage or voltage drop?"
Circuit fantasist‭ wrote over 2 years ago · edited over 2 years ago

It is interesting to answer such a question, "What is across a capacitor - voltage or voltage drop?"

TonyStewart‭ wrote over 2 years ago

Is this interesting?

All voltages are relative to some reference. The local ground is defined as zero volts, just like Protective Earth PE ground. So if one side of the cap. is 0V then the voltage drop is the same as "the voltage" (relative to 0V.)

What is reactance, really?

It is an impedance value that stores energy by charge-voltage (capacitor) or charge-current (choke, inductor, reactor)

Circuit fantasist‭ wrote over 2 years ago

@TonyStewart, you got me thinking again about the difference between "voltage" and "voltage drop"... and I think I found an even better answer than before...

I think that when we charge a capacitor from a voltage source, there is a voltage across the source and a voltage drop across the capacitor; when we discharge a capacitor through a resistor, there is a voltage across the capacitor and a voltage drop across the resistor.

Ie, the voltage is an attribute of the source and the voltage drop is an attribute of the load... and the problem is that a capacitor can be both a load and a source.

So what is across it depends on the role it is currently playing.

TonyStewart‭ wrote over 2 years ago · edited over 2 years ago

"across it" or it's own voltage is merely a value indicating the state of charge at some time. The actual charge Q = CV(t) for the capacitor's voltage. Your question is just about the semantics of a single test point (with an assumed common test point of 0V) or differential "across"