Project Team
Students
Swarnanathan Mahalingam
Electrical Engineering
Penn State Brandywine
Faculty Mentors
Shruti Shrestha
Penn State Brandywine
Physics Department
Yunting Liu
Penn State University Park
Electrical Engineering
Project
https://sites.psu.edu/mcreu/files/formidable/2/2023-07-25/optional-poster-pdf-MCREU.pdf
Project Video
Project Abstract
Rectification converts alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC). The half-wave (HWR) and full-wave bridge rectifiers (FWBR) are two standard circuits used for this purpose. While they technically produce DC output as it is unidirectional, it still varies with time and may not be suitable for many electronic devices. Electronic reactive elements like capacitors or inductors are used as filters to enhance the performance of these rectifiers to provide a more stable DC output. This project aims to study rectifier circuits for their output voltage, power efficiency, and ripple voltage with and without a capacitor filter. Circuit simulations and experimental models are created, which help perform the analysis mentioned above. Simulation and experimental results show that rectifier circuits’ efficiency levels are generally high. Even with the addition of a capacitor filter, efficiency does not significantly change and provides more input and useable DC output power. Increasing the capacitance of filters reduce ripple voltage, but it is impractical to use large-value capacitors due to cost and size. Calculating ripple precisely through experiments and theory can be challenging due to the exponential discharge of capacitors, determination of conduction angles, and non-linearity of diodes. Still, in most scenarios, a sufficient approximation of acceptable ripple in a circuit can help to determine the value of capacitors for a given load.
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