So each “closed loop” experiences the same voltage drop as the emf of the cell. So if you added the “total” voltage drop in the circuit, it would exceed that provided by the cell.
Voltage is Joules per Coulomb.
The number of Coulombs in a circuit is fixed.
Maybe it is the product of Voltage and Current which is conserved in parallel circuits? I’m struggling to work it all out in my head probably because I’m not sure what the basic rules of circuits are and how they relate to Physics I’ve encountered elsewhere. It all just seems a little bizarre and contradictory.
(UK A-Level)
In: Physics
>So if you added the “total” voltage drop in the circuit, it would exceed that provided by the cell.
It would, which is why this is wrong to do. You only add voltages which are in series. You should do a refresher on Kirchhoff’s laws before you proceed any further down your electrical courses.
>Voltage is Joules per Coulomb.
>The number of Coulombs in a circuit is fixed.
These two ideas are a terrible way of approaching it. Volts should be treated as a fundamental unit in electricity.
>Maybe it is the product of Voltage and Current which is conserved in parallel circuits?
**THIS** is finally correct. The energy coming out of your voltage source is equal to the voltage times the current through branch one plus the voltage times the current through branch two. This is the same as the voltage of the source times the current leaving the source. The same voltage is applied across each branch, but the current from the source splits between them.
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