The rectifier is a circuit used to convert alternating current AC to direct current DC, electronic system works in DC.
Three types of diode-based rectifier arrangement are available, on that half-wave rectifier consists of 1 diode, the full-wave rectifier consists of 2 diodes, and the bridge rectifier consists of 4.
Three of the rectifier types have different power output and efficiency values, in this article, we explain the advantages and disadvantages of a half-wave rectifier circuit.
The half-wave rectifier circuit
The figure shows the half-wave rectifier circuit, we already mention that the half-wave rectifier consists of 1 diode.
The output wave produced on output will be half-wave with the gap between two positive half-waves, this is due to diode conduct only on positive half cycle.
Advantages & disadvantages of the half-wave rectifier
Half wave rectifier is not a rectifier circuit that had more applications on electronics, this is because they had more disadvantages than advantages.
In some applications, half-wave rectifier circuits are been used at low power applications, but it is not considered as the professional rectifier circuit used in the power supply section.
Advantages of the half-wave rectifier
- Fewer components are required to make a half-wave rectifier
- It is very cheap to make a circuit
- Simple and easy construction
- Easy circuit designing
Explain the main advantages of the half-wave rectifier
The main advantage of a half-wave rectifier is they have simple construction arrangements, a single diode is needed to make a rectifier circuit.
This is why a half-wave rectifier is less expensive than other rectifier circuits and the designing of a half-wave is simple.
Disadvantages of the half-wave rectifier
- High ripple factor
- The average output voltage obtained is very less.
- Power output is less.
- An elaborated filter is needed to get a DC output.
- Rectification efficiency is low
- The transformer utilization factor is less.
- The DC output gets from the half-wave is less.
- The half-wave rectifier is not good at audio systems.
- The wave produced by the half-wave rectifier is not DC
Explain the main disadvantages of the half-wave rectifier
Ripple factor
Ripple factor is the amount of AC contents present in a DC rectified output wave.
On a half-wave rectifier, the ripple factor is high, which means the half-wave rectifier needs a complex filter section for noise cancellation.
Power output
The power output is the total power produced by a rectifier circuit.
The power produced by the half-wave rectifier is low, this is due to the sum of voltage and current being low to less utilization factor.
Rectification efficiency
Rectification efficiency is the ratio of output by input.
In half-wave rectifier rectification efficiency is low, 20% efficiency this is because half of the cycle of AC power is wasted.
Transformer utilization
It is the amount of electrical power that utilize on a transformer.
The transformer utilization factor is less, this is due to only half of a cycle can be utilized.
Half wave rectifier waveform
The figure shows the conversion waveform form from sine wave AC to direct current DC.
The half-wave rectifier circuit is capable of converting, AC to DC but the waveform is half as like in the figure.
