Lower voltage diode the other side of a step up transformer?

Feb 26, 2023 Last reply: 2 years ago 92 Replies

Can I put a diode BEFORE a step up transformer so I can use a lower voltage diode for half wave rectification?


No. Transformers only transfer AC. As Peeler would point out. this is a remarkably dumb question.

I'm sure the OP knew the answer before posting...

John

The OP is remarkably dumb, and has a lot of firmly held idiotic opinions, Mu guess would be that the question was sincere - it's no more blindly stupid that the other nonsense he comes up with.

No. At least if you are really meaning what you said here. I'm assuming this is some kind of mains to low voltage psu. Surely, putting the rectifier diodes is going to be on the secondary in any case. Depending on what you want, it can be done several ways. If the transformer has two ends to the secondary, ie no centre tap, then you need a bridge rectifier to allow both halves of the ac waveform to be rectified. If it has a centre tap then you have one rectifier from the ends, ie one for each and the centre tap as 0V Or you could use two bridges, isolating the centre tap and get two supplies. Lastly, the least efficient way is one half wave rectifier across the secondary, but then you are only really using one of the cycles of the mains in effect. Brian

Maybe not so dumb as just not educated in the electronics. At work an engineer placed a 480 volt motor speed controller before a 480 to 240 volt transformer to run a 240 volt motor. Did not work.

No.

What IQ did you say you had? I think whoever told you was lying.

You need to expand on what you're trying to achieve.

Ah. Humor. Thanks for the laugh.

Why not? Other than increased copper losses, a transformer-coupled AC motor should be the same as any motor.

It was funny in more than one sense.

As long as one is adding diodes, may as well build a doubler on the output side. Two topologies suggest themselves.

A center-tapped secondary could be useful too. All sorts of possibilities.

I think I just invented the non-integer-ratio voltage multiplier.

Garbage groups deleted.

Sure yuo can put a diode in series with the primary, but you'll need a larger (higher voltage) primary winding on the transformer so as to avoid repeated magnetic saturation of the core.

And even that that's not going to make rectification on the secondary easier. All you end up doing is increasing resistive losses in the primary.

No, the transformer will turn it back into AC. It responds to /changes/ of current and a half wave will go up and then down resulting in +ve and

-ve from the secondary.

Yer-but, the issue is over the transformer being subject to a DC voltage which in the case of the OP will be: 230V x sqrt(2) x pi / 2 being developed across the transformer. That will produce a net DC current in the transformer and make some heat for which the transformer is not designed.

But you're right the secondary, before its imminent failure, will produce an AC waveform though likely to be a very distorted sine wave.

The transformer will saturate and burn out

The waveform across the transformer is still 50Hz.

I presume the confusion is over full vs half-wave rectification regarding ripple frequency, 50 vs 100Hz (60 vs 120Hz)

It's not a guarantee.

Small transformers are very lossy and have a high resistance and may survive the impose DC voltage. Larger transformer with lower winding resistance may not. We also don't know the spec of the transformer the OP had in mind and the applied voltage.

No, at the same frequency

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