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Oijl
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Homework Statement
What direct current will produce the same amount of thermal energy, in a particular resistor, as an alternating current that has a maximum value of 2.60 A?
Homework Equations
The Attempt at a Solution
A DC would dissipate a constant amount of thermal energy in a resistor. An AC would dissipate a varying amount, but oscillating, so there would be an average. Couldn't I just say that since I know that current in an AC circuit oscillates as a sine wave, that the "average current" would just be half the amplitude, and so that over a period of time that is a multiple of the period of oscillation, a DC of half of the maximum value of current for the AC would have dissipated the same amount of thermal energy as the AC?