Hi MIKE.

11-Sep-03 23:16:28, MIKE ROSS wrote to Greg Mayman

 GM>> 1. If the waveshape of the current is sinusoidal without the
 GM>> capacitor, it will still be sinusoidal after the capacitor is
 GM>> added. The current will NOT flow through the lamp for a greater
 GM>> part of the cycle.

 MR> Doesn't the capacitor supply current back to the circuit when the
 MR> dynamo voltage drops to zero? Doesn't the inductive reactance of
 MR> the windings maintain that current flow? Is the lamp lit?

it does that, but it doesn't cause current to flow for a greater time.

if either way you're getting a sine wave there only two instants when
there's no ccurrent flowing.

 MR> No harmonics are added. It's the load voltage amplitude which
 MR> rises.

Mean or RMS voltage?  - does it actually make the lamp brighter ?

 GM>> That is a lot different from saying that "the capacitor can
 GM>> supply current to the lamp when the dynamo output goes through
 GM>> zero and hence the current will flow for a greater part of the
 GM>> output cycle."

 MR> And if the amplitude of the voltage is greater doesn't more
 MR> current flow over part of the output cycle?

measuriong mean or RMS voltage will give self-consistant results for
current, but, unless you've boosted the RMS voltage you've not increased
the power output to the lamp.

the phrase "greater part" seems meaningless. Curent is flowing for
essentially all of the cycle, it crosses zero twice but never
settles there.

 -=> Bye <=-

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