Final answer:
The ratio of the actual power delivered by a load to the input power is known as the power factor, which represents the efficiency of power use, especially when there is a phase difference between voltage and current.
Step-by-step explanation:
The ratio of the actual power delivered by a load to the input power required by the load to operate in electrical engineering is known as the power factor. The power factor is significant because it indicates the efficiency with which electrical power is converted into useful work output.
It is essentially the percentage of the input power that is actually put to use. For purely resistive loads, where the voltage and current are in phase, the power factor is 1 or 100%. However, in circuits where the voltage and current are out of phase due to inductive or capacitive loads, the power factor will be less than 1. The power factor is calculated using the cosine of the angle (cos θ) between the current and voltage waveforms. Additionally, the concept of percent loss is related to the power factor, and is the ratio of lost power to the total or input power, expressed as a percentage. This understanding can also be applied when considering the efficiency of machines, where it is the ratio of output work to input work.
In physics, the ratio of the actual power delivered by a load divided by the input power required by the load to operate is called the power factor. It represents the amount by which the power delivered in the circuit is less than the theoretical maximum of the circuit due to voltage and current being out of phase.