instructables

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply

by tanner_tech

Everybody has seen a high voltage arc somewhere, below will give a demonstration of this power supply
whether it be in the movies, on YouTube, or on TV. I in action and a detailed and in depth explanation on
think we can all agree that they are really cool, right? how the circuit functions. It will also complement the
Well, what if I told you that you could build a power instructions in this instructable to make sure that you
supply that would be able to produce these high are able to learn everything about how a ZVS high
voltage arcs? It would be extremely cheap and easy voltage power supply works and how to build one.
to build, use lots of recycled components, produce
high voltage at a relatively high current, and be
//www.youtube.com/embed/UMRvqS953AE
extremely versatile. Well, you can. If you follow the
instructions contained in this instructable, then you
should be able to have an awesome high voltage
supply that you can use for any projects requiring
Lets Get Started!
high voltage, like Tesla coils, or just for fun! The video

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 1

Step 1: What Is a ZVS Flyback Driver and How It Works
Many of you who are reading this may be asking
"What is a ZVS driver"? Well, it is an extremely
efficient oscillator circuit that is able to drive almost
any transformer with a high frequency, high
amperage electric current. It is the backbone of the
high voltage power supply that this instructable is
showing you how to make.
To understand how this power supply works, I will
explain the different sections of it. The first section is
the 40 volt DC power supply. This provides the 40
volts 10 amps that powers the ZVS driver board. It
first uses a streetlight transformer to step down the
110 volt mains current to 40 volts. This is then
rectified and filtered to achieve a clean DC voltage
that is fed to the ZVS oscillator board.
The ZVS oscillator pushes and pulls current though a
center-tapped coil around the ferrite core of a TV's
flyback transformer. This constant changing of the
current's direction creates a fluctuating magnetic field
in the ferrite. This induces a current into the
thousands of windings in the secondary coil of the
transformer. Because there is a high ratio of
secondary windings to primary windings, the voltage
on the output of the flyback transformer is extremely
high.
The ZVS oscillator is the most complex part of this
circuit, so I am going to explain how it works. First of
all, when the current is switched on, it flows though
the inductive choke into the center tap of the
transformer. The choke is to make sure the circuit
does not draw to much amperage on start up. The
ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 2
current also flows thought the two 470 ohm resistors
into the gates of the two Mosfets. Now, because no
component is perfect, one Mosfet is going to turn on
first. When this happens, it hogs all the gate current
from the other Mosfet. It will also draw the drain of
that Mosfet that is on to ground. This will not only let
current flow though one half of the primary coil to
ground, but it will also let current flow though one of
the fast diodes form the other gate of the other
Mosfet, locking it off. Because there is a capacitor in
parallel with the coil, it creates a resonant tank circuit.
Because of this resonant action, the drain of the other
Mosfet will swing back and forth in its voltage,
eventually reaching 0 volts. Once this voltage is
reached, the gate charge from the Mosfet that is on
will discharge though the fast diode into the drain of
the opposite Mosfet, effectivly shutting it off. With this
Mosfet off, the other Mosfet has the opportunity to
turn on. After this, the cycle repeats thousands of
times per second. The 10K resistor is meant to
deplete any excess gate charge on the Mosfet,
because it is like a capacitor, and the Zener diode is
meant to keep the gates of the mosfets at 12 volts or
under so they do not explode.
Now, this explanation may have been a little hard to
understand, but do not worry! I also explained this
with visuals in my video in the introduction, it is also
here:
//www.youtube.com/embed/UMRvqS953AE
Step 2: Gathering Parts

To build this power supply, you will need a few parts, luckily, most can be salvaged for free. If you have ever seen
an old CRT TV laying on the side of the road, pick it up, because it has most of the parts needed for this project in
it. Ok, so you will need:

1. Flyback transformer (Old TV)

2. 2x 470ohm resistors (Old TV)
3. 2x fast diodes (Old TV)
4. 2x 12 volt Zener diodes (Old TV)
5. 2x 10K resistors (Old TV)
6. 2x N-Channel Mosfets (I got mine on bulk online, but you can also find them in an old TV or
computer power supply)
7. 0.68uF capacitor (Old TV)
8. Wire (Old TV)
9. Inductive choke (Computer Power Supply)
10. Heat Sync (Old Computer)
11. Wood
12. Power Transformer (Needs a high current output between 12 and 40 volts, mine is 40 volts and
came out of a junk pile of streetlight parts)
13. lightswitch
14. power plug
15. wax
16. Copper Clad board

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 3

Step 3: Tools

You will need:

1. A soldering Iron
2. Circuit Board Etching materials
3. Wire cutters/strippers
4. Drill
5. Hot glue gun

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 4

Step 4: Creating the Circuit Board

The circuit board of your ZVS power supply will hold my other instructables on how to do this.
all the components of the oscillator. Now, you can
just connect all the components of your oscillator Here is one on how to make a ferric chloride agitator:
together on a solderable perfboard, or using plain old
point to point soldering, but I preferred to make mine https://www.instructables.com/id/Ferric-Chloride-A...
on a custom circuit board. Now to do this, you will first
need to design your circuit on a copper clad board And here is my 3 part instructable series on how to
with permanent marker. This is relatively hard and etch circuit boards:
takes some practice to do. Basically, you place the
components on the board where you think they will fit https://www.instructables.com/id/Circuit-Board-Man...
best, then draw traces connecting the different pins of
the components together in the most efficient way https://www.instructables.com/id/Circuit-Board-Man...
possible. You will need to closely follow the
schematic diagram for this. Now, to actually etch https://www.instructables.com/id/Circuit-Board-Man...
these circuit boards, I suggest that you read some of

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 5

 1

1. High frequency vibrations of ferric chloride.

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 6

Step 5: Soldering the Circuit Board
After you have etched the circuit board, you will need
to solder components onto it. To do this, you will need
to first use your soldering iron and solder to make
sure that every trace on the circuit board has a thick
layer of solder on it. After that, use your soldering iron
to heat up the solder on the board and insert the
components into the molten solder traces. After this is
done, you should have a piece of circuit board that
has all the components on it and all the connections
are soldered together and connected correctly. You
will also need to put screw lugs on the board to
connect the external wires to. Wait to add the
capacitors to the circuit, that will be in a later step.
The circuit board will then need to be mounted to a
ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 7
heat sync. This will dissipate any heat that the
mosfets produce. They will not produce very much
heat, because this circuit is switching at zero volts
(ZeroVoltageSwitching), but add a heat sync just in
case. I added my heat sync by drilling holes in the
aluminium and using screws to mount the Mosfets to
the aluminium.
Now, I understand that not everybody has the
capabilities to etch their own circuit boards, so if you
want, you can just follow the schematic to build the
same circuit on a cheap solder-able perfboard.
Step 6: The Capacitor Bank

In this circuit, the capacitors get very hot. This is due
to them always having current flowing thought them.
Now, the capacitor value we need to make this circuit
work properly is 0.68uF, so we will need the most
amount of capacitors together to reach this same
value, but have a larger surface area for heat
dissipation. You also need to get the voltage rating of
them above 400 volts due to inductive voltage spikes
in the resonant circuit. What I did, is put two
capacitors in parallel, then added that capacitor in
series with another capacitor to form the right value
for this circuit. This whole capacitor was added in
parallel to the primary coil of the flyback transformer.

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 8

Step 7: The Low Voltage Power Supply
The ZVS oscillator needs a low voltage power supply
to power it. It needs about 40 volts at 10 amps to
work at full capacity. To build this power supply, you
will need to first take a light switch, and hook it up in
series with a plug that goes to line voltage. This will
then need to be connected to a transformer that can
handle this type of load. I used a street light
transformer, but a microwave oven transformer could
ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 9
be easily rewound to give the same results. The out
puts of this transformer will need to be rectified.
Because the rectifier is handling about 400 watts, it
will also be mounted to the heat sync. To filter the
DC, add a few capacitors in line with the power rails
on your ZVS driver board.
Step 8: The Flyback Transformer

This is the part of the power supply that converts the
AC signal produced by the oscillator into a high
voltage current. A flyback is usually used in an old TV
to provide the accelerating potential for the anode.
Now, to couple the transformer to the oscillator, you
will need to wind 10 turns of thick gauge wire around
the ferrite core sticking out of the side. You will then
need to connect the wires to the ZVS oscillator circuit,
with the center tap going to the inductive choke and
both sides going the drains of each of the MOSFETS.
Now, one issue with a flyback transformer at high
voltages is arc over on the bottom pins. To solve this,
you will first need to find the high voltage pin on the
bottom. You can find this by turning it on and seeing
what pin the red wire will arc to. Then, solder some
wire to this pin, and cut off all the other pins. You will
then need to cover them in melted wax to prevent arc
over.

Step 9: Mounting the Components

The most important part of a power supply is the case. I made my case using 4 pieces of oak planks all screwed
together. All the components were then mounted to the top using wood screws and hot glue. I kept the top
uncovered because it looks cool, but you can build this part of the high voltage power supply however you want.

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 10

Step 10: It Works!
Now, after everything is built on your ZVS driver, it is
time to fire it up. To do this, you will first need to
connect the ground of the flyback transformer (The
wire sticking out of the transformer bottom) to a heat
sync on an electrically insulated surface. Then,
connect the anode of the transformer (The red wire
with a suction cup) to a chicken stick. This is a term
used to identify an insulating pole that you can hold
one end of to move a high voltage wire without
getting shocked by it. I made my chicken stick with a
PVC pipe, some alligator clips, and a metal stick, but
you can also use a well insulated screwdriver. With
that, have fun with the arcs!!!!! Check out the next
ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 11
step for other things you can do with this supply.
DISCLAIMER: This project utilizes high voltages
at high currents. The output of this power supply
IS LETHAL. I highly advise anyone that builds this
to exercise caution when using this power supply.
Use common sense when operating and do not
under any circumstances touch any of the
terminals of the flyback while operational. I am
not responsible for any harm caused due to the
creation of this ZVS power supply.
ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 12
Step 11: Other Uses

This power supply is extremely versatile. I have used DESTROYING WITH HIGH VOLTAGE:
it in a great many of my projects, from a Tesla coil, to
a method of carving pumpkins. I will put links to my
//www.youtube.com/embed/tFH1T7qrs2E
other videos below that explain the many ways to use
this power supply.

Make sure to vote for me in the Power Supply

EXTREME PUMPKIN CARVING
Contest!

Thanks for reading and good luck building! //www.youtube.com/embed/__yjQ-kdHds

TESLA COIL:

//www.youtube.com/embed/yY8lGmibGVY

ZVS High Voltage Power Supply: Page 13