What does reactance do in a circuit?

What does reactance do in a circuit?

• A. It dissipates energy as heat
• B. It opposes current permanently
• C. It stores energy and returns it to the circuit a quarter cycle later
• D. It creates a constant energy sink

Answer: (C)

Reactance describes how energy is temporarily stored in a circuit and then returned to the circuit as the signal progresses. Inductors store energy in a magnetic field and capacitors store energy in an electric field. In alternating current, this stored energy is exchanged back and forth, and the phase relationship between voltage and current is such that the energy is released about a quarter of a cycle after it’s stored. This means no energy is permanently consumed or wasted in this part of the circuit—unlike resistors, which dissipate energy as heat. So, reactance is all about storing energy and feeding it back into the circuit a quarter cycle later, while causing the current and voltage to be out of phase.

Reactance describes how energy is temporarily stored in a circuit and then returned to the circuit as the signal progresses. Inductors store energy in a magnetic field and capacitors store energy in an electric field. In alternating current, this stored energy is exchanged back and forth, and the phase relationship between voltage and current is such that the energy is released about a quarter of a cycle after it’s stored. This means no energy is permanently consumed or wasted in this part of the circuit—unlike resistors, which dissipate energy as heat. So, reactance is all about storing energy and feeding it back into the circuit a quarter cycle later, while causing the current and voltage to be out of phase.