Physics Investigatory

Project

To study the idea of a full-wave bridge

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 Submitted to- Submitted By-

Mr. Uday Bhanu Akshat Goel

XII-A

Certificate

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Declaration

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Acknowledgement

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Table of contents

Full-wave bridge
rectifier
Introduction
Many electronic circuits require a rectified DC power supply to
power various electronic basic components from the available
AC mains supply. Rectifiers are used to convert AC power to DC
power. Among the rectifiers, the bridge rectifier is the most
efficient rectifier circuit.

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We can define bridge rectifiers as a type of full-wave rectifier
that uses four or more diodes in a bridge circuit configuration
to efficiently convert alternating (AC) current to a direct (DC)
current.

construction
The construction of a bridge rectifier is shown in the figure
below. The bridge rectifier circuit is made of four diodes D1, D2,
D3, D4, and a load resistor RL. The four diodes are connected in
a closed-loop configuration to efficiently convert the
alternating current (AC) into Direct Current (DC). The main
advantage of this configuration is the absence of the expensive
center-tapped transformer. Therefore, the size and cost are
reduced.

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The input signal is applied across terminals A and B, and the
output DC signal is obtained across the load resistor RL
connected between terminals C and D. The four diodes are
arranged in such a way that only two diodes conduct electricity
during each half cycle. D1 and D3 are pairs that conduct electric
current during the positive half cycle/. Likewise, diodes D2 and
D4 conduct electric current during a negative half cycle.

Working
When an AC signal is applied across the bridge rectifier,
terminal A becomes positive during the positive half cycle while
terminal B becomes negative. This results in diodes D1 and D3
becoming forward biased while D2 and D4 becoming reverse
biased.
The current flow during the positive half-cycle is shown in the
figure below:

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 During the negative half-cycle, terminal B becomes positive
while terminal A becomes negative. This causes diodes D2 and
D4 to become forward biased and diode D1 and D3 to be
reverse biased.
The current flow during the negative half cycle is shown in the
figure below:

From the figures given above, we notice that the current flow
across load resistor RL is the same during the positive and
negative half-cycles. The output DC signal polarity may be
either completely positive or negative. In our case, it is
completely positive. If the diodes’ direction is reversed, we get
a complete negative DC voltage.
Thus, a bridge rectifier allows electric current during both
positive and negative half cycles of the input AC signal.
The output waveforms of the bridge rectifier are shown in the
below figure.

Characteristics
Ripple Factor
The smoothness of the output DC signal is measured by a factor
known as the ripple factor. The output DC signal with fewer
ripples is considered a smooth DC signal while the output with
high ripples is considered a high pulsating DC signal.
Mathematically, the ripple factor is defined as the ratio of
ripple voltage to pure DC voltage.
The ripple factor for a bridge rectifier is given by
2
𝑉𝑟𝑚𝑠
𝛾 = √( − 1)
𝑉𝐷𝐶
For bridge rectifiers, the ripple factor is 0.48.

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Peak Inverse Voltage
The maximum voltage that a diode can withstand in the reverse
bias condition is known as a peak inverse voltage. During the
positive half cycle, the diodes D1 and D3 are in the conducting
state while D2 and D4 are in the non-conducting state.
Similarly, during the negative half cycle, diodes D2 and D4 are
in the conducting state, and diodes D1 and D3 are in the non-
conducting state.

Efficiency
The rectifier efficiency determines how efficiently the rectifier
converts Alternating Current (AC) into Direct Current (DC).
Rectifier efficiency is defined as the ratio of the DC output
power to the AC input power. The maximum efficiency of a
bridge rectifier is 81.2%.
𝐷𝐶 𝑂𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟
𝜂=
𝐴𝐶 𝑂𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟

Advantages
• The efficiency of the bridge rectifier is higher than the
efficiency of a half-wave rectifier. However, the rectifier
efficiency of the bridge rectifier and the centre-tapped
full-wave rectifier is the same.
• The DC output signal of the bridge rectifier is smoother
than the output DC signal of a half-wave rectifier.
• In a half-wave rectifier, only half of the input AC signal is
used, and the other half is blocked. Half of the input signal
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 is wasted in a half-wave rectifier. However, in a bridge
rectifier, the electric current is allowed during both
positive and negative half cycles of the input AC signal.
Hence, the output DC signal is almost equal to the input
AC signal.

Disadvantages
• The circuit of a bridge rectifier is complex when compared
to a half-wave rectifier and centre-tapped full-wave
rectifier. Bridge rectifiers use 4 diodes while half-wave
rectifiers and centre-tapped full wave rectifiers use only
two diodes.
• When more diodes are used more power loss occurs. In a
centre-tapped full-wave rectifier, only one diode conducts
during each half cycle. But in a bridge rectifier, two diodes
connected in series conduct during each half cycle. Hence,
the voltage drop is higher in a bridge rectifier.

Self-inductance
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Self-inductance is the property of the current-carrying coil that
opposes the change of current flowing through it. It occurs
mainly due to the self-induced emf produced in the coil itself.
The self-induced emf present in the coil will resist the rise of
current when the current increases, and it also resists the fall of
current if the current decreases. The above property of the coil
exists only for the changing current, which is the alternating
current and not for the direct or steady current.
The SI Unit of self-inductance is Henry(H).

Formula
We can derive an expression for the self-inductance of a coil
from Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction.
𝑑𝜙
𝑉𝐿 = −𝑁
𝑑𝑡
Where:
VL = induced voltage in volts
N = number of turns in the coil
𝑑𝜙
𝑑𝑡
= rate of change of magnetic flux in webers / second
Alternatively, the induced voltage in an inductor may also be
expressed in terms of the inductance (in henries) and the rate
of change of current.
𝑑𝑖 𝑑𝑖
𝑉 = −𝐿 𝑑𝑡 Or 𝐸 = −𝐿 𝑑𝑡

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 Mechanical Equivalent of
Self-inductance
The self-induced emf is also called the back emf as it opposes
any change in the current in a circuit. Physically, self-inductance
acts as inertia. In mechanics, it is also the electromagnetic
analogue of mass. So, work needs to be done against the back
emf (VL) in establishing the current. This work done is stored as
magnetic potential energy and is given by:
1 2
𝑊 = 𝐿𝑖 .
2
This is the energy required to build up a current i in the
inductor.

Uses of Self Inductance

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• Inductors used as relays

Limitations of Inductors
• 1) An inductor is limited in its current-carrying capacity by
its resistance and dissipates heat.
• 2) Inductors in pure form are difficult to manufacture due
to stray effects and size, whereas capacitors are relatively
easy to manufacture with negligible stray effects.
• 3) Inductors may affect the nearby components in the
circuit with their magnetic fields.

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Thank
You!

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