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AC -to- DC Converters
(Uncontrolled Rectifiers)
Rectification is the process of conversion of alternating input voltage to direct output voltage.
Rectifier converts ac power to dc power. Rectifiers are of two types uncontrolled rectifiers and
controlled rectifiers. The rectifier which uses uncontrolled power electronics devices as their
power converting device are known as uncontrolled rectifier, whereas those use controlled devices
for power conversion are known as controlled rectifiers. Diode based rectifiers are uncontrolled
rectifiers whereas thyristor based are known as controlled rectifiers.
A rectifier may be half-wave type or full- wave type. A half-wave rectifier is one in which current
in any one line, connected to ac source, is unidirectional. However, a full-wave rectifier has
bidirectional current in any one line connected to ac source.
A rectifier may be one-pulse, two-pulse, or n-pulse type where,
Pulse number = number of load current (or voltage) pulses during one cycle of ac source voltage.
Single-phase Half Wave Rectifier
Single phase uncontrolled half-wave rectifiers are the simplest and possibly the most widely used
rectification circuit for small power levels as their output is heavily affected by the reactance of
the connected load.
For uncontrolled rectifier circuits, semiconductor diodes are the most commonly used device and
are so arranged to create either a half-wave or a full-wave rectifier circuit. The advantage of
using diodes as the rectification device is that by design they are unidirectional devices having an
inbuilt one-way pn-junction.
This pn-junction converts the bi-directional alternating supply into a one-way unidirectional
current by eliminating one-half of the supply.
Half-wave Rectification (R Load)

VD
VS V0

The single-phase half-wave rectifier configuration above passes the positive half of the AC supply
waveform with the negative half being eliminated. By reversing the direction of the diode, it can
pass negative halves and eliminate the positive halves of the AC waveform. Therefore, the output
will be a series of positive or negative pulses.
Thus, there is no voltage or current applied to the connected load, RL for half of each cycle. In
other words, the voltage across the load resistance, RL consists of only half waveforms, either
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positive or negative, as it operates during only one-half of the input cycle, hence the name of half-
wave rectifier.
This pulsating output waveform not only varies ON and OFF every cycle, but is only present 50%
of the time and with a purely resistive load, this high voltage and current ripple content is at its
maximum.
This pulsating DC means that the equivalent DC value dropped across the load resistor, RL is
therefore only one half of the sinusoidal waveforms average value. Since the maximum value of
the waveforms sine function is 1 (sin(90o)), the Average or Mean DC value taken over one-half of
a sinusoid is defined as: 0.637 x maximum amplitude value.
So, during the positive half-cycle, AAVE equals 0.637*AMAX. However, as the negative half-cycles
are removed due to rectification by the diode, the average value during this period will be zero as
shown.

Sinusoids Average Value

Input voltage is𝑉𝑠 = 𝑉𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡
Average value of output for load voltage,
1 𝜋
𝑉0 = ∫ 𝑉 𝑑(𝜔𝑡)
2𝜋 0 𝑠
1 𝜋
𝑉0 = ∫ 𝑉 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑(𝜔𝑡)
2𝜋 0 𝑚
𝑉𝑚
= |−cos 𝜔𝑡|𝜋0
2𝜋
𝑉𝑚
=
𝜋
RMS value of output voltage,
1⁄
1 𝜋 2 2
𝑉0𝑟 = [ ∫ 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 (𝜔𝑡) 𝑑(𝜔𝑡)]
2𝜋 0
1⁄
𝜋 2
𝑉𝑚 1 − cos 2𝜔𝑡
= [∫ 𝑑(𝜔𝑡)]
√2𝜋 0 2
𝑉𝑚
=
2

RL Load :
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A single-phase one-pulse diode rectifier feeding RL load is shown in Fig a. Current i0 continues to
flow-even after source voltage vs has become negative; this is because of the presence of
inductance L in the load circuit. After positive half cycle of source voltage, diode remains on, so
the negative half cycle of source voltage appears across load until load current i0 decays to zero at
t=. Voltage vR=i0R has the same wave shape as that of i0.
When i0=0 at t=; vL =0, vR=0 and voltage vs appears as reverse bias across diode D as shown. At
, voltage vD across diode jumps from zero to Vm sin  where  > . Here  =  is also the
conduction angle of the diode.
Average value of output voltage,
1 𝛽 𝑉𝑚
𝑉0 = ∫ 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜔𝑡. 𝑑(𝜔t) = (1 − cos 𝛽)
2𝜋 0 2𝜋
Average load or output current
𝑉0 𝑉𝑚
𝐼0 = = (1 − cos 𝛽)
𝑅 2𝜋𝑅
RL Load with Freewheeling Diode:
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To improve the performance of single- phase one-pulse diode rectifier freewheeling diode (FD) is
connected across the RL load as shown in above fig a. The output voltage is v0= vS for 0 ≤ 𝜔𝑡 ≤
𝜋. At t=, source voltage vS is zero, while the output current i0 is not zero because of L in the load
circuit. Just after t=, as vS tends to reverse, negative polarity of vS reaches cathode of FD
through conducting diode D, whereas positive polarity of vS reaches anode of FD direct. FD is thus
forward biased. Hence the load current i0 is immediately transferred from D to FD as vS tends to
reverse. After t=, diode or source current iS=0 and diode D is subjected to reverse voltage with
PIV equal to Vm at t=3/2, 7/2 etc.
After t=, current freewheel through circuit R, L, and FD. The energy stored in L is dissipated in
R. When energy stored in L = energy dissipated in R, current falls to zero at t=<2. Depending
upon the value of R and L, the current may not fall to zero even when t=2, then it became
continuous conduction. In the above fig. b the load current decays to zero before 2.Here this is
discontinuous conduction is shown.
1 𝜋 𝑉𝑚
The average output voltage is 𝑉0 = 2𝜋 ∫0 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜔𝑡. 𝑑(𝜔t) = 𝜋

𝑚𝑉
The value of average load current, 𝐼0 = 𝜋𝑅

The functions of freewheeling diode in the circuit as under:

(i) It prevents the output voltage from becoming negative.

(ii) As the stored energy of L is transferred to load R thus the system efficiency is improved.
(iii) Nature of load current become more smoother and better.
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Single-phase Full -wave Diode Rectifier

Centre tapped and full wave bridge rectifiers are the two types of full-wave diode rectifiers.
(i) Single-Phase Full-Wave Mid-Point or Centre-Tapped Diode Rectifier:
The circuit diagram of a single-phase full-wave mid-point or center-tapped diode rectifier is
shown in Fig. a. When the terminal ‘a’ is positive with respect to ‘b’, or mid-point O, Diode D1
conducts for  period. In the next half cycle, ‘b’ is positive with respect to ‘a’, or mid-point O,
then diode D2 conducts. v0 is the output voltage which is shown in Fig. b. At the time when ‘a’
became positive with respect to ‘b’ , the voltage across diode D2 is reverse biased and it became
2vs. In the next half cycle, diode D1 experiences a reverse voltage of 2vs. Thus, for diodes D1 and
D2, peak inverse voltage is 2Vm. Waveforms of Fig. (b) show that for one cycle of source voltage,
there are two pulses of output voltage. So single-phase full-wave diode rectifier can also be called
single-phase two-pulse diode rectifier.

Fig. a Fig. b

Average value of output voltage,

1 𝜋 2𝑉𝑚
𝑉0 = ∫ 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜔𝑡. 𝑑(𝜔t) =
𝜋 0 𝜋
Average load or output current,
𝑉0 2𝑉𝑚
𝐼0 = =
𝑅 𝜋𝑅
Rms voltage ,
1 𝜋 2 2 1 𝑉𝑚
𝑉0𝑟 = ∫ [𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜔𝑡. 𝑑(𝜔𝑡)] ⁄2 = = 𝑉𝑠
𝜋 0 √2
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Rms current,
𝑉𝑠
𝐼0𝑟 =
𝑅
Load power,
= 𝑉0𝑟 . 𝐼0𝑟 = 𝐼0𝑟 2 . 𝑅

(ii) Single-Phase Full-Wave Diode Bridge Rectifier:

Fig. a Fig. b

A single-phase full-wave bridge rectifier employing diodes is shown in above Fig. (a). When 'a' is
positive with respect to 'b', diodes Dl, D2 conduct together so that output voltage is vab. Each of
the diodes D3 and D4 is subjected to a reverse voltage of vs as shown in Fig. (b), When 'b' is
positive with respect to 'a', diodes D3, D4 conduct together and output voltage is vba· Each of the
two diodes Dl and D2 experience a reverse voltage of vs as shown.
In comparison in case of a mid-point full-wave rectifier diodes are subjected to PIV of 2Vm
whereas a diode in full-wave bridge rectifier has PIV of Vm only.