Capacitor C1 is initially charged to V1 and capacitor C2 is initially charged to V2. The capacitors are then connected to each other, positive terminal to positive terminal and negative terminal to negative terminal.(a) If C1 = 24 μF with an initial voltage of 25 V, and capacitor C2 = 13 μF is charged to 11 V. What is the final voltage, in volts, across C1 ?

20.08 Volts

Explanation:

Parallel Connection of Capacitors

The voltage across any two elements connected in parallel is the same. If the elements are capacitors, then each voltage is

They are both the same after connecting them, thus

Or, equivalently

The total charge of both capacitors is

We can compute the total charge by using the initial conditions where both capacitors were disconnected:

Now we compute Q1 from the equation above

The final voltage of any of the capacitors is