EXPERIMENT 2

RECTIFIERS AND FILTER CIRCUIT

1. Objective:
i) Tounderstand the half-wave and full wave rectification principles:
ii) Toinvestigate the behaviour of half-wave and full-wave rectifiers;
ii) Toinvestigate theeffect of filtering capacitor in the rectifier circuits.
2. Basic Theory:
A process of converting a time varying ac voltage into dc voltage is called
RECTIFICATION and the device used for this purp0se is called RECTIFIER. Asilicon diode
is used for this purpose. Aone way conducting property of a diode is used in rectifiers. There
are two types of rectifiers:
(a) Half-wave rectifier, and
(b) Full-wave rectifier.

A) HALF-WAVE RECTIFIER:
A half-wave rectifier rectifies either positive or negative part of the input ac voltage
depending upon the way a diode is connected to the input source. A simple half-wave
rectifier circuit is depicted in Figure 2.1 (a).
D
Vin A

R
V

(a)
Vp
Voc
Vim Ve.

(b)
Figure 2.! (a)llalf wave rectifier and (b) input and output wavetom

During the positive half cycle of the input voltage, anode of the diode will be positive
with respect to itscaihode. Hence the diode will be forward biased and it conducts a current
6
 This current produces a voitage drop across a load resistor R, which is the rectified de
I:
voltage the diode will be reverse biased
voltage. During the negative half cvcle of the input
next positive half cycle of the
and it will not concduct. The iiode conducts again during the
half-wave output voltages are
input voltage. The sinusoiil input voltage and the rectified
rectified voltage is a
depicted in Figure 2.1( .i: is obvious ftom the Figure 2.1 (b) that the
rectifier will be equal
pulsating or a ripple dc voitage. The ripple frequency of the hal f-wave
be one pulse or ripple in the
to the frequency of the inpui source voltage because there will
the connection of the
output voltage for each cvc.e of the input voltage. It is obvious that if
cycles of the
diode in Figure 2.1 (a) is reversed then the rectifier will rectify the negative half
input ac voltage.

B) FULL-WA VE RECTIFIER:
D.
Vin
AM
R R Vi
W
RS

D:
(a)
2Ve

Vyms (b)
and output waveforms
Figure 2.2(a) Simple Full-wave rectifier and (b) input
(a). The input ac voltage and th
A simple full-weve rectifier is shown in Figure 2.2
(b). This rectiier circuit rectifies bot
rectified voltage curves are depicted in Figure 2.2
voltage. Hence it is called full-wave rectifiei.
positive and negative cycles of the input ac B, act as a
in series between points A and
The two resistors of equal value R, connected
two resistors R acts as a electrical middle
voltage divider. The middle point Cbetween the becomes
input voltage when the point A
point. At any momeni during the cycles of the
will be negative with respect to the point C
positive with respect to the point C the point B
positive and the point B will be negative the diode
and vice versa. When the point A will be
During the next half cycle of the input
D, will conduct and the diode D, will not conduct,
A will be negative with respect to
voltage i.e. when the point B will be positive and the point
cut ofr. Again when the pont A
the point Cdiode D, will conduct and the diode D, will be
the point C during the next
becomes positive and point Bwill be negative with respect to rectified
It is clear from the
half cvcle of the input voltage and the previous process Tepcats, Due to the series
the full wave rectificd vollage is also a pulsating dc.
Voltage curve that
 appear at the output
resistor acting like a voltage divider only half of the (ínpt voltage will voltage divider afull-
and half of the input voltage will be lost.,To overcome this cons of the
wave rectifier circuit with a center tanned transformer as shown in Figure 2.3 1s used.
D,

Vin

D)
rectifier
Figure 2.3Center tapped full-wave
The full-wave
bridge full-wave rectifier as given in Figure 2.4 is used.
In practice a
the previous full-wave rectifier.
bridge rectifier also works just like

Da

Vin

D; R V

full-wave rectifier
Figure 2.4 Bridge
lower
winding of the transformer is positive the
of the secondary through
When the upper end conduct and the load current I, flows
and D, theinput
will be negative. Then diodes D, 2.4. During the next half cycle of be
end
bottom as shown in the Figure negative and the lower end will
R, from top to winding willbe again flows through
R,
upper end of the secondary load current I,
voltage the and the current I flows only
in
case diodes D,and D, conduct the cases the
positive. In this important to note that
in both
the bridge
full-wave
bottom. It is rectifier of Figure 2.3,
from top to the
UJnlike thc previous full-wave transformer. Thus the output voltage of
one direction. secondary winding of
the
rectifier given in the
Figure
entire of the full-wave
rectifier uses an the output voltage
be twice
bridge rectifier will rectifier circuits, the popular
filter circuit in the across the lad
2.3.
investigate the effect of the connected at the rectified output
To
used. A capacitor is
capacitor-filter circuit is 8
 the capacitor.
resistance as shown in Figure 2.5and a dc voltage is obtained across

D2
Vin

DA D3

Figure2.5 Full-wave rectifier with capacitor filter

VL
V.

filteration
Figure 2.6Output waveform after
shown in
wave rectifier before the signal is tiltered is
full
The output voltage of a resulting waveform after the filter capacitor is
2.6 shows the
Figure 2.2 (b), vwhile Figure that the filtered waveform is essentially a voltage
Notice
connected at the rectifier output. ripple factor, r, can be calculated by
following
The
with some ripple (or ac variation) V,.
Ve
expression: 23
V.(rms)-x100%
Vac component Vde Ide KL
ofthe ripple or ac
where V,(rms) - rms value
voltage
Vdc - average dc Ve
Vae
Components Required:
3. Equipment andTransformer,
1
Solid state VOM.
2. 1
Dual Oscilloscope,
3
Silicon diodes,
4 4
Resistor, 4.7ks2
1 uF, 25V
Electrolytic capacitor,1000 25V
5.
1 uF,
Electrolytic capacitor, 4700
6.
7. 1
4. Procedure:
and sichout filter capacitor
A) To investigate a half wave rectifier with

1. Connect acircuit as shown in Figure 2.7.

D

Vin V, 4.7k2 V,

half-wave rectification
Figure 2.7 Circuit for investigating

the primary winding of the transtormer.

2. Plug ac mains to
oscilloscope to the secondary winding of the
channel A of the
3. Then connect the
transformer.
scope to display two to three complete cycles of the ac
4. Adjust thesweep frequency of the
of the
voltage waveform.
control knob of the scopefor adesired amplitude
gain (V/div)
3. Adjust the vertical
waveform.
of the scope ior a desired width of the waveform. of the
horizontal gain knob in the center
6. Adjust the vertical shift knobs toplace the waveform
horizontal and
7. Adjust the will be the
signal and it
SCope screen. waveform of the ac input
The waveform now
observed is the
original point of this input waveform on
waveform. Mark the DO NOT
reference for the rectified wavefom on a graph paper carefully.
trace the observed
the scope and adjusted knobs during the experiment.
previously Table 2.1.
DISTURB the frequency ofthe input ac waveform in voltage
peak voltage and the the load resistor, R,. The
9. Note the oscilloscope across
channelB of the
10. Connect the will be the rectified
voltage.
waveform.
waveform now observed just below the ac
waveform on the same
graph paper
rectified wavefom in Table 2.1.
11.Trace this frequency ofthe output following expression:
voltage and the waveform using
12.Note the peak (average) value from the rectified
dc resistor as shown in
13.Calculate theVdeVon x0.318 across the load
capacitance 1000uF
capacitor filter, C of
14. Connect
the and trace the
voltage on the scope as before whether
Figure 2.8. wave rectified voltmeter and see
filtered half vith the
15.Observe the rectified voltage
Then measured the dc without the filter.
waveform. value of the dc voltage
different irom the
this value is 10
16. Observe the ripple voltage still present in the filtered rectified voltage just by changing
the scale of the vertical gain of the scope to the larger value.

4.7kS2 V

Figure 2.8 Circuit for investigating rectifier circuit with filter capacitor
17. Measure the peak to peak value of the ripple voltage anddetermine its rms value.
18.Determine theripple factor. r, of the rectified voltage using the fllowing expression:
Vi(rms) *x100%
Vde
19. Repeat the procedures for C = 4700uF.

B) To investigate afull wave bridge rectifier with and without afilter capacitor
Figure 2.4 with
!. Set up the full wave bridge rectifier circuit. The connection is shown in
R =4.7 k.
2. Repeat same as in procedures 1-12 of the half wave rectifer.
expression:
3. Calculate the dc (average)value from the rectified waveform using following
Ve=Von X0.636
1000uF across the load resistor as shown in
4. Connect the capacitor filter. C of capacitance
Figure 2.5.
5. Repeat the same as procedures 14-19 of
the half wave rectifier.

Table 2.1
Half wave rectifier Full wave bridge rectifier

Inputpeak voltage, Vip:

Input rms voltage. r)s:
V
Output peak voltage. Vop:
Average output voltage, Vau) V
Inputfrequency, fp, Hz
Output frequency, fout': Hz

5. Conclusion