Department of Electronic and Communications Engineering

Fourth Stage
Power Electronics Lab
Exp. No. 2: Single Phase Half-Wave Uncontrolled Rectifier with RL
Load

1. Half-Wave Uncontrolled Rectifier with RL Load

If the load is inductive, the waveforms considerably change. During the
positive half-cycle, the current starts from zero to a peak value. The energy
will transfer from the source to the inductor and store as magnetic field

1
𝐸 = 𝐿𝐼𝑝2 .
2

The diode cannot interrupt the existed current. When the source reverses
polarity, the diode must wait for the current to goes to zero by itself before
conduction ceases. In fact, the diode will continue to conduct throughout the
negative half-cycle, while the output voltage is negative and the total energy
stored in the inductor is returned to the source.
 The rectifier circuit is the simplest and shown in Figure 1.

1
 Fig.1. (a) and (b) Simulation circuit diagram and Half-wave uncontrolled rectifier
waveforms with RL load (R=5 Ω, L= 10 mH), respectively.

Due to the inductive load the conduction period of the diode will extend beyond
180° until the current becomes zero at ωt = π + σ (σ is the angle during the diode
conducts in the negative half cycle). The voltage and current waveforms are shown
in fig. 1.

The average output voltage is

1 𝜋+𝜎 𝑉𝑚
𝑉𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑉𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (1 − cos(𝜋 + 𝜎))
2𝜋 0 2𝜋

𝑉𝑑𝑐
𝐼𝑑𝑐 =
𝑅

In half-wave uncontrolled rectifier with RL load needing to a capacitor

connected in parallel with RL load to make the output waveform is a DC
approximately as shown in Figure 2. Thus, the shape of the DC waveform is depend
on the value of C.
2
Fig.2. (a) and (b) Simulation circuit diagram and Half-wave uncontrolled rectifier
waveforms with RL load and C (R=5 Ω, L= 10 mH, C= 10 mF), respectively.

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Discussion:
1. Drive the equations of the output current and output voltage of the single
phase half-wave uncontrolled rectifier with RL load.

2. A. In the half-wave rectifier, is the output current and voltage uni-directional

or bi-directional? Explain that?
B. For the circuit shown below: the peak value of the load current occur at ω𝑡
= 𝜋, explain that?

3. In the circuit shown below: the switch (shown in green) is closed at ωt = 0.

The load current or capacitor current has the maximum value at ωt = 0, why?

4. Re-connect Figure 1. (a) with R equal to 50 ohms, L equal to 100 mH, and
sketch the waveforms of input voltage, output voltage, and output current.
Compare the results with the results in Figure 1. By calculation of:

a. The dc output voltage.

b. The r.m.s. input voltage source.
c. The energy that transfer from the source to the inductor.
d. The efficiency of rectification.

5. What is the advantages and disadvantages of half wave rectifier with RL load?

6. Give three applications of a half wave rectifier with RL load.

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 7. Re-connect Figure 2. (a) with R equal to 50 ohms, L equal to 2 mH, and C
equal to 0.05 𝜇F, then sketch the waveforms of input voltage, output voltage,
and output current. Compare the results with the results in Figure 2. By
calculation of:

e. The dc output voltage.

f. The r.m.s. input voltage source.
g. The efficiency of rectification.

8. What is the effect of increasing the value of the capacitance?

9. Give an example of a practical case of half-wave uncontrolled rectifier with

RL load connected in parallel with C.

10. Propose another circuit(s) to convert AC signal to DC signal.