Basic Electricity
8009-1. (Refer to Figure 2.) What is the total capacitance
of a circuit containing three capacitors in parallel with
capacitances of .02 microfarad, .05 microfarad, and .10
microfarad, respectively?
A— .170 µF.
B— 0.125 µF.
C— .0125 µF.
You do not need to refer to Figure 2 to answer this question.
Instead, use the formula CT = C1 + C2 + C3. When capaci-
tors are connected together in parallel, the plate area of
all the capacitors add together and the total capacitance
is the sum of the individual capacitances.
.02 + .05 + .10 = .170 µF
8009-2. Convert farads to microfarads by
A— multiplying farads by 10 to the power of 6
B— multiplying picofarads by 10 to the power of 6
C— multiplying microfarads by 10 to the power of 6
Each farad is equal to 10 6 microfarads. Example: 2 farads
is equal to 2 × 10 6 (2,000,000) microfarads.
8009-3. Convert farads to picofarads by:
A— multiplying farads by 10 to the power of 12
B— multiplying microfarads by 10 to the power of -12
C— multiplying picofarads by 10 to the power of 12
Each farad is equal to 10 12 picofarads. Example: 2 farads
is equal to 2 × 10 12 (2,000,000,000) picofarads.
8010. Unless otherwise specified, any values given for
current or voltage in an AC circuit are assumed to be
A— instantaneous values.
B— effective values.
C— maximum values.
Almost all measuring instruments used for electrical
system servicing measure the effective (rms) values of
alternating current.
Unless peak values, peak-to-peak values, or average
values are specifically called out, effective values are
assumed.
Answers
8009-1 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8009-2 [A] (102) AMT-G Ch 4
8011 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8012 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4
Fast-Track Series General Test Guide
8011. When different rated capacitors are connected in
parallel in a circuit, the total capacitance is
(Note: C T = C1 + C2 + C3 . . .)
A— less than the capacitance of the lowest rated
capacitor.
B— equal to the capacitance of the highest rated
capacitor.
C— equal to the sum of all the capacitances.
When capacitors are connected in parallel, the effective
area of the plates add, and the total capacitance is the
sum of the individual capacitances.
8012. When inductors are connected in series in a circuit,
the total inductance is (where the magnetic fields of each
inductor do not affect the others)
(Note: L T = L 1 + L 2 + L3 . . .)
A— less than the inductance of the lowest rated inductor.
B— equal to the inductance of the highest rated inductor.
C— equal to the sum of the individual inductances.
When several inductors are connected together in such a
way that there is no inductive coupling, the total inductance
is the sum of the individual inductances.
8013. (Refer to Figure 3.) When more than two induc-
tors of different inductances are connected in parallel in
a circuit, the total inductance is
A— less than the inductance of the lowest rated inductor.
B— equal to the inductance of the highest rated inductor.
C— equal to the sum of the individual inductances.
When two or more inductors having different inductances
are connected in parallel, the total inductance is less than
the inductance of the lowest rated inductor.
8009-3 [A] (102) AMT-G Ch 4 8010 [B] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
8013 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
ASA 5
Questions, Explanations, Answers & References
8014. What is the total capacitance of a certain circuit
containing three capacitors with capacitances of .25 micro-
farad, .03 microfarad, and .12 microfarad, respectively?
(Note: C T = C1 + C2 + C3)
A— .4 µF.
B— .04 pF.
C— .04 µF.
When three capacitors are connected in parallel, their total
capacitance is the sum of the individual capacitances.
CT = C1 + C 2 + C3
= 0.25 + 0.03 = 0.12
= 0.4 microfarad
8015. Which requires the most electrical power during
operation?
(Note: 1 horsepower = 746 watts)
A— A 12-volt motor requiring 8 amperes.
B— Four 30-watt lamps in a 12-volt parallel circuit.
C— Two lights requiring 3 amperes each in a 24-volt
parallel system.
The 12-volt motor requires 96 watts of power.
The four 30-watt lamps require 120 watts of power.
The two 24-volt, 3-amp lights require 144 watts of power.
8016. How much power must a 24-volt generator furnish
to a system which contains the following loads?
Unit Rating
One motor (75 percent efficient).............................1/5 hp
Three position lights.................................. 20 watts each
One heating element..............................................5 amp
One anticollision light..............................................3 amp
(Note: 1 horsepower = 746 watts)
A— 402 watts.
B— 385 watts.
C— 450 watts.
The motor is 1/5 HP, therefore 746 watts (1 HP) / 5 = 149
watts. This is the output of the engine. It takes more energy
to produce 149 watts; find this with the efficiency rating:
149/X = 75/100; X = 199. Therefore, the 1/5-horsepower
motor that is 75 percent efficient requires 199 watts.
The three position lights require a total of 60 watts.
The heating element requires 120 watts.
The anticollision light requires 72 watts.
The total power the generator must produce is 451 watts.
Answers
8014 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8015 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4
8018 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8019 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
6 ASA General Test Guide Fast-Track Series
8017. A 12-volt electric motor has 1,000 watts input and 1
horsepower output. Maintaining the same efficiency, how
much input power will a 24-volt, 1-horsepower electric
motor require?
(Note: 1 horsepower = 746 watts)
A— 1,000 watts.
B— 2,000 watts.
C— 500 watts.
The power produced by an electric motor is the product
of its voltage and its current.
A 12-volt motor will require 83.3 amps of current for
its 1,000 watts of input power to produce 746 watts (1
horsepower) of output power.
A 24-volt motor operating at the same efficiency will
also require 1,000 watts of input power for its 746 watts
of output power, but it will need only 41.7 amps of current.
8018. How many amperes will a 28-volt generator be
required to supply to a circuit containing five lamps in
parallel, three of which have a resistance of 6 ohms each
and two of which have a resistance of 5 ohms each?
A— 1.11 amperes.
B— 1 ampere.
C— 25.23 amperes.
A current of 4.67 amps flows through each of the three
six-ohm lamps. And a current of 5.6 amps flows through
each of the five-ohm lamps.
Since all of these lamps are in parallel, the total current
is the sum of the currents flowing through each lamp. The
total current is 25.21 amps.
8019. A 1-horsepower, 24-volt DC electric motor that is 80
percent efficient requires 932.5 watts. How much power
will a 1-horsepower, 12-volt DC electric motor that is 75
percent efficient require?
(Note: 1 horsepower = 746 watts)
A— 932.5 watts.
B— 1,305.5 watts.
C— 994.6 watts.
When we know the horsepower output and the efficiency
of an electric motor, the voltage does not enter into the
computation. To find the number of watts required, divide
the wattage for the total horsepower by the decimal
equivalent of the efficiency.
746 ÷ 0.75 = 994.6 watts
8016 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8017 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
 Basic Electricity

8020. The potential difference between two conductors 8023. (Refer to Figure 4.) How much power is being fur-
which are insulated from each other is measured in nished to the circuit?
A— volts. A— 575 watts.
B— amperes. B— 2,875 watts.
C— coulombs. C— 2,645 watts.
The potential difference between two conductors is a
measure of the electrical pressure difference between
the conductors.
Electrical pressure is measured in volts.

8020-1. Which effect does not apply to the movement of

electrons flowing in a conductor?
A— Magnetic energy.
B— Thermal energy.
C— Static energy.
Current flowing through a conductor produces a magnetic
field and also dissipates thermal energy.

8021. A 24-volt source is required to furnish 48 watts to a

parallel circuit consisting of four resistors of equal value.
What is the voltage drop across each resistor?
A— 12 volts. This is a resistive circuit. The power is the product of the
B— 6 volts. square of the current times the resistance.
C— 24 volts. P = I 2 × R = 23 2 × 5 = 2,645 watts
Since the resistors are all in parallel across the 24-volt
power source, each resistor has the entire 24 volts dropped 8024. (Refer to Figure 5.) What is the impedance of an
across it. AC-series circuit consisting of an inductor with a reactance
of 10 ohms, a capacitor with a reactance of 4 ohms, and
a resistor with a resistance of 8 ohms?
8022. When calculating power in a reactive or inductive
AC circuit, the true power is A— 22 ohms.
B— 5.29 ohms.
A— more than the apparent power. C— 10 ohms.
B— less than the apparent power in a reactive circuit
and more than the apparent power in an inductive
circuit.
C— less than the apparent power.
True power in an AC circuit is the product of the circuit
voltage and only that part of the current in phase with
the voltage.
Apparent power is the circuit voltage multiplied by all
of the current.
True power is always less than the apparent power in
a reactive circuit which is any AC circuit containing either
inductance or capacitance. The total reactance in this circuit is the difference between
the inductive reactance and the capacitive reactance.
Total reactance is 10 – 4 = 6 ohms.
The impedance is the square root of the resistance
squared plus the reactance squared. This is the square
root of 64 plus 36, or the square root of 100.
The circuit impedance is 10 ohms.

Answers
8020 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8020-1 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8021 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4 8022 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
8023 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8024 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4

Fast-Track Series General Test Guide ASA 7

Questions, Explanations, Answers & References

8025. (Refer to Figure 6.) If resistor R 5 is disconnected 8026. (Refer to Figure 7.) If resistor R 3 is disconnected
at the junction of R 4 and R3 as shown, what will the ohm- at terminal D, what will the ohmmeter read?
meter read? A— Infinite resistance.
A— 2.76 ohms. B— 10 ohms.
B— 3 ohms. C— 20 ohms.
C— 12 ohms.

With resistor R5 disconnected, the ohmmeter reads the

parallel resistance of R 1 and R 2 in parallel with R4 and
R3, which are in series. The total resistance is found by
When resistor R 3 is disconnected at terminal D, it is iso-
the formula:
lated from the rest of the circuit, and the ohmmeter will
read only the resistance of R3.
Because R3 is open (it has a break in it), its resistance
is infinite.

8027. (Refer to Figure 8.) With an ohmmeter connected

into the circuit as shown, what will the ohmmeter read?
A— 20 ohms.
B— Infinite resistance.
C— 10 ohms.

The ohmmeter will read the resistance of R1 and R2 in

parallel; this is 10 ohms.
The open circuit (break) in resistor R3 gives it an infi-
nite resistance, and it does not affect the reading of the
ohmmeter.

Answers
8025 [B] (015) AMT-G Ch 4 8026 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8027 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4

8 ASA General Test Guide Fast-Track Series


8028. (Refer to Figure 9.) How many instruments (volt-
meters and ammeters) are installed correctly?
A— Three.
B— One.
C— Two.
The first ammeter is installed across the voltage. This is
wrong; the ammeter will burn out.
The first voltmeter will measure the source voltage (the
voltage of the battery), but its polarity is wrong. It will read
backward.
The voltmeter across the light bulb is installed correctly.
The ammeter in series with the light bulb and the bat-
tery is correct. It will read the current flowing through the
light bulb.
8029. The correct way to connect a test voltmeter in a
circuit is
A— in series with a unit.
B— between the source voltage and the load.
C— in parallel with a unit.
A voltmeter must always be connected in a circuit in parallel
with the unit whose voltage is to be measured.
8029-1. What will a voltmeter read if properly connected
across a closed switch in a circuit with electrical power on?
A— Voltage drop in the component(s) the switch is
connected to.
B— System voltage.
C— Zero voltage.
When a voltmeter is connected across a closed switch in
perfect condition or a good fuse, it will read zero voltage. A
voltage drop of up to 0.2 volts is acceptable with maximum
circuit current flow through the switch.
Answers
8028 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4 8029 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4
8030 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8031 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
Fast-Track Series General Test Guide
Basic Electricity
8030. Which term means .001 ampere?
A— Microampere.
B— Kiloampere.
C— Milliampere.
The metric prefix “milli-” means one thousandth.
0.001 ampere is one milliampere.
8031. A cabin entry light of 10 watts and a dome light of
20 watts are connected in parallel to a 30-volt source. If
the voltage across the 10-watt light is measured, it will be
A— equal to the voltage across the 20-watt light.
B— half the voltage across the 20-watt light.
C— one-third of the input voltage.
When lights are connected in parallel across a voltage
source, the voltage across each of the lights will be the
same as the voltage of the source.
8032. A 14-ohm resistor is to be installed in a series circuit
carrying .05 ampere. How much power will the resistor be
required to dissipate?
A— At least .70 milliwatt.
B— At least 35 milliwatts.
C— Less than .035 watt.
Power dissipated in a resistor is found by multiplying its
resistance by the square of the current.
P = I 2 × R = 0.05 2 × 14 = 0.035 watts.
0.035 watts is 35 milliwatts.
8033. .002KV equals
A— 20 volts.
B— 2.0 volts.
C— .2 volt.
A KV is a kilovolt, or 1,000 volts. Two thousandths (.002)
of a kilovolt is equal to 2.0 volts.
8029-1 [C] (015) AMT-G Ch 4, AC43.13 Ch 11
8032 [B] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8033 [B] (015) AMT-G Ch 4
ASA 9
Questions, Explanations, Answers & References

8034. (Refer to Figure 10.) What is the measured voltage 8036. Which requires the most electrical power?
of the series-parallel circuit between terminals A and B? (Note: 1 horsepower = 746 watts)
A— 1.5 volts. A— A 1/5-horsepower, 24-volt motor which is 75
B— 3.0 volts. percent efficient.
C— 4.5 volts. B— Four 30-watt lamps arranged in a 12-volt parallel
circuit.
C— A 24-volt anticollision light circuit consisting of two
light assemblies which require 3 amperes each
during operation.
The 1/5-horsepower motor operating at 75 percent effi-
ciency uses 198.93 watts of power.
The four 30-watt lamps use 120 watts of power.
The anticollision light circuit uses 144 watts of power.

8037. What unit is used to express electrical power?

A— Volt.
B— Watt.
C— Ampere.
The two batteries on the left side are connected in series The volt is a measure of electrical pressure.
and the two batteries on the right side are connected in The watt is a measure of electrical power.
series. The two pairs of batteries are connected in parallel.
The series connections between terminals A and B The ampere is a measure of electrical current flow.
give this circuit a voltage of 3.0 volts.
8037-1. What is the basic unit of electrical quantity?
8035. A 24-volt source is required to furnish 48 watts to A— Electromotive Force.
a parallel circuit consisting of two resistors of equal value. B— Ampere.
What is the value of each resistor? C— Coulomb.
(Note: R t = E 2/P) The coulomb is the basic unit of electrical quantity.
A— 24 ohms. 1 coulomb is equal to 6.28 X 1018 electrons.
B— 12 ohms.
C— 6 ohms.
8038. What is the operating resistance of a 30-watt light
To solve this problem, first find the total resistance of the bulb designed for a 28-volt system?
circuit. A— 1.07 ohms.
2 B— 26 ohms.
RT = E
P C— 0.93 ohm.
2
= 24 A 30-watt light bulb operating in a 28-volt electrical system
48 has a hot resistance (operating resistance) of 26.13 ohms.
2
=
12 ohms R = E
P
There are two resistors of equal value in parallel that pro- 2
vide this resistance, therefore each resistor must have a = 28
resistance of twice this value, or 24 ohms. 30
26.13 Ω
=

Answers
8034 [B] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8035 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8036 [A] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8037 [B] (031) AMT-G Ch 4
8037-1 [C] (031) AMT-G Ch 4 8038 [B] (015) AMT-G Ch 4

10 ASA General Test Guide Fast-Track Series