Rectifiers are devices that are used to convert alternating current and reverse direction to direct current. DC or direct current only flows in one direction. The reversing process is also known as the rectification and there are different forms of rectifiers like silicon controlled rectifier, selenium oxide rectifiers, vacuum tube diodes and other semiconductor switches.
Rectifier have different uses but you can often find them being used as essential components in high voltage direct current power transmission systems and indirect current power supply. Apart from generating direct current which is used to power source, rectification also has other uses. For example, the detectors that are used in radio signal are also rectified. And even in gat heating systems, there is also a process called flame rectification.
The Rectification Process
Pure DC or direct current is the target goal for rectification. During the conversion process, there might be amount of AV voltage that get mixed with the DC output. This is called as the ripple voltage. In case the power level is not too high, there is a way to lessen the ripple by using filtering networks.
There are cases where this particular method counts the pulses of the direct current output for every electrical rotation. For instance, 1 pulse rectifier creates one pulse after the completion of one cycle of AC waveform. The 2 pulse rectifier also known as the single phase full wave rectifier created 2 pulses of direct current output for every one cycle of AV. For a three phase full wave rectifier, it is called as 6 pulse unit. Some may ask as to whether it is possible to have more pulses in a rectifier circuit. This is definitely possible through polyphase circuit. It is possible to create more than 6 pulses especially with the use of transformers.
Kinds of Rectifiers
There are different kinds of rectifiers depending on the application. The half-wave rectifier circuit offers a simply method but might be insufficient for power applications. For a more energy efficient choice, the half-wave rectifier is used. Depending on the application, one can choose the rectifier circuit configuration. If you want to have complete use of both half cycles of the sine wave, you need full wave rectifier.
With the alternating current of AC, AC DC rectifiers have become really useful as you can convert the source of power from DC to AC.
Bruce electric is a leading AC DC rectifier supplier. They supply rectifiers manufactured by Kinetics Industries Inc. These quality products are built in the USA & designed to meet wide range of application.
