UNIT–II

Single Phase Converters

INTRODUCTION TO CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS:

Some years back ac to dc power conversion was achieved using motor

generator sets, mercury arc rectifiers, and thyratorn tubes. The modern ac to dc power
Converters are designed using high power, high current thyristors and presently most
of the ac-dc power converters are thyristorised power converters. The thyristor
devices are phase controlled to obtain a variable dc output voltage across the output
load terminals. The phase controlled thyristor converter uses ac line commutation
(natural commutation) for commutating (turning off) the thyristors that have been
turned ON.
The phase controlled converters are simple and less expensive and are widely
used in industrial applications for industrial dc drives. These converters are classified
as two quadrant converters if the output voltage can be made either positive or
negative for a given polarity of output load current. There are also single quadrant ac-
dc converters where the output voltage is only positive and cannot be made negative
for a given polarity of output current. Of course single quadrant converters can also be
designed to provide only negative dc output voltage.
The two quadrant converter operation can be achieved by using fully
controlled bridge converter circuit and for single quadrant operation we use a half
controlled bridge converter.

Controlled rectifiers are line commutated ac to dc power converters which are

used to convert a fixed voltage, fixed frequency ac power supply into variable dc
output voltage.

Type of input: Fixed voltage, fixed frequency ac power supply.

Type of output: Variable dc output voltage

The input supply fed to a controlled rectifier is ac supply at a fixed rms voltage and at a fixed
frequency. We can obtain variable dc output voltage by using controlled rectifiers. By
employing phase controlled thyristors in the controlled rectifier circuits we can obtain variable
dc output voltage and variable dc (average) output current by varying the trigger angle (phase
angle) at which the thyristors are triggered. We obtain a uni-directional and pulsating load
current waveform, which has a specific average value. Different types of line commutated
converters are
 Phase controlled rectifiers which are AC to DC converters.
 AC to AC converters
▪ AC voltage controllers, which convert input ac voltage into
variable ac output voltage at the same frequency.
▪ Cyclo converters, which give low output frequencies.
All these power converters operate from ac power supply at a fixed rms input
supply voltage and at a fixed input supply frequency. Hence they use ac line
commutation for turning off the thyristors after they have been triggered ON by the
gating signals
CLASSIFICATION OF PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

The phase controlled rectifiers can be classified based on the type of input
power supply as
 Single Phase Controlled Rectifiers which operate from single phase ac input
power supply.
 Three Phase Controlled Rectifiers which operate from three phase ac input
power supply.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF SINGLE PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

Single Phase Controlled Rectifiers are further subdivided into different types
 Half wave controlled rectifier which uses a single thyristor device (which
provides output control only in one half cycle of input ac supply, and it
provides low dc output).

 Full wave controlled rectifiers (which provide higher dc output)

Full wave controlled rectifier using a center tapped transformer (which
requires two thyristors).
 Single phase semi-converter (half controlled bridge converter, using two
SCR’s and two diodes, to provide single quadrant operation).
DIFFERENT TYPES OF THREE PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

 Three phase half wave controlled rectifiers.

 Three phase full wave controlled rectiriers.
o Semi converter (half controlled bridge converter).
o Full converter (fully controlled bridge converter).

TERMINOLIGIES

Pulse number of a rectifier (p): Refers to the number of output voltage/current pulses in
a single time period of the input ac supply voltage. Mathematically, pulse number of a
rectifier is given by

Classification of rectifiers can also be done in terms of their pulse numbers. Pulse number
of a rectifier is always an integral multiple of the number of input supply phases.
Firing angle of a rectifier (α): Used in connection with a controlled rectifier using
thyristors. It refers to the time interval from the instant a thyristor is forward biased to the
instant when a gate pulse is actually applied to it. This time interval is expressed in
radians by multiplying it with the input supply frequency in rad/sec. It should be noted
that different thyristors in a rectifier circuit may have different firing angles. However, in
the steady state operation, they are usually the same.

Extinction angle of a rectifier (γ): Also used in connection with a controlled rectifier. It
refers to the time interval from the instant when the current through an outgoing thyristor
becomes zero (and a negative voltage applied across it) to the instant when a positive
voltage is reapplied. It is expressed in radians by multiplying the time interval with the
input supply frequency (ω) in rad/sec. The extinction time (γ/ω) should be larger than the
turn off time of the thyristor to avoid commutation failure.

Overlap angle of a rectifier (μ): The commutation process in a practical rectifier is not
instantaneous. During the period of commutation, both the incoming and the outgoing
devices conduct current simultaneously. This period, expressed in radians, is called the
overlap angle “μ” of a rectifier. It is easily verified that α + μ + γ = π radian.

Commutation in a rectifier: The process of transfer of current from one device (diode or
thyristor) to the other in a rectifier. The device from which the current is transferred is
called the “out going device” and the device to which the current is transferred is called
the “incoming device”. The incoming device turns on at the beginning of commutation
while the out going device turns off at the end of commutation.

Commutation failure: The situation where the out going device fails to turn off at the
end of commutation and continues to conduct current.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DIODE RECTIFIERS AND PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS:

The diode rectifiers are referred to as uncontrolled rectifiers which make use
of power semiconductor diodes to carry the load current. The diode rectifiers give a
fixed dc output voltage (fixed average output voltage) and each diode rectifying
element conducts for one half cycle duration (T/2 seconds), that is the diode
conduction angle = 1800 or  radians.

A single phase half wave diode rectifier gives (under ideal conditions) an
average dc output voltage Vo(dc) Vm/π and single phase full wave diode rectifier
gives Vo(dc) 2Vm/π
Thus we note that we cannot control (we cannot vary) the dc output voltage or
the average dc load current in a diode rectifier circuit.

PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

In a phase controlled rectifier circuit we use a high current and a high power
thyristor device (silicon controlled rectifier; SCR) for conversion of ac input power
into dc output power.
The thyristors are forward biased during the positive half cycle of input supply
and can be turned ON by applying suitable gate trigger pulses at the thyristor gate
leads. The thyristor current and the load current begin to flow once the thyristors are
triggered (turned ON) say at t   . The load current flows when the thyristors
conduct from t  to  . The output voltage across the load follows the input
supply voltage through the conducting thyristor. At t   , when the load current
falls to zero, the thyristors turn off due to AC line (natural) commutation. In
 ome bridge controlled rectifier circuits the conducting thyristor turns off, when
the other thyristor is (other group of thyristors are) turned ON.
The thyristor remains reverse biased during the negative half cycle of input
supply. The type of commutation used in controlled rectifier circuits is referred to AC
line commutation or Natural commutation or AC phase commutation.
When the input ac supply voltage reverses and becomes negative during the
negative half cycle, the thyristor becomes reverse biased and hence turns off. There
are several types of power converters which use ac line commutation. These are
referred to as line commutated converters.

Phase controlled rectifier circuits are used to provide a variable voltage output
dc and a variable dc (average) load [Link] can control (we can vary) the average
value (dc value) of the output load voltage (and hence the average dc load current) by
varying the thyristor trigger [Link] can control the thyristor conduction angle
𝛿 from 1800 to 00 by varying the trigger angle  from 0 to 180 , where thyristor
0 0

conduction angle      

APPLICATIONS OF PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

 DC motor control in steel mills, paper and textile mills employing dc motor
drives.
 AC fed traction system using dc traction motor.
 Electro-chemical and electro-metallurgical processes.
 Magnet power supplies.
 Reactor controls.
 Portable hand tool drives.
 Variable speed industrial drives.
 Battery charges.
 High voltage DC transmission.
 Uninterruptible power supply systems (UPS).

SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH AN R LOAD:

CIRCUIT DIAGRAM:

(R  RL Load Resistance)

Fig.: Single Phase Half-Wave Thyristor Converter with a Resistive Load

 A single phase half wave thyristor converter which is used for ac-dc power
conversion is shown in the above figure. The input ac supply is obtained from a main
supply transformer to provide the desired ac supply voltage to the thyristor converter
depending on the output dc voltage required. vP represents the primary input ac
supply voltage. vS represents the secondary ac supply voltage which is the output of
the transformer secondary.
During the positive half cycle of input supply when the upper end of the
transformer secondary is at a positive potential with respect to the lower end, the
thyristor anode is positive with respect to its cathode and the thyristor is in a forward
biased state. The thyristor is triggered at a delay angle of t   , by applying a
suitable gate trigger pulse to the gate lead of thyristor. When the thyristor is triggered
at a delay angle of t   , the thyristor conducts and assuming an ideal thyristor, the
thyristor behaves as a closed switch and the input supply voltage appears across the
load when the thyristor conducts from t   to  radians. Output voltage vO  vS ,
when the thyristor conducts from t   to  .
For a purely resistive load, the load current iO (output current) that flows
when the thyristor T1 is on, is given by the expression
v
i  O for   t  
O

RL
The output load current waveform is similar to the output load voltage
waveform during the thyristor conduction time from  to  . The output current and
the output voltage waveform are in phase for a resistive load. The load current
increases as the input supply voltage increases and the maximum load current flows at
when the input supply voltage is at its maximum value. The maximum value
(peak value) of the load current is calculated as

io(max) = Im = Vm/RL

Note that when the thyristor conducts (T1 is on) during t   to  , the
increases as the input supply voltage increases and the maximum load current
flows at tant t ∏/2 , when the input supply voltage reaches its maximum
value.
When the input supply voltage decreases the load current decreases. When the
supply voltage falls to zero at t   , the thyristor and the load current also falls to
zero at t   . Thus the thyristor naturally turns off when the current flowing
through it falls to zero at t   .
During the negative half cycle of input supply when the supply voltage
reverses and becomes negative during t   to 2 radians, the anode of thyristor is
at a negative potential with respect to its cathode and as a result the thyristor is reverse
biased and hence it remains cut-off (in the reverse blocking mode). The thyristor
cannot conduct during its reverse biased state between t  to 2 . An ideal
thyristor under reverse biased condition behaves as an open switch and hence the load
current and load voltage are zero during t   to 2 . The maximum or peak reverse
voltage that appears across the thyristor anode and cathode terminals is Vm .
The trigger angle  (delay angle or the phase angle  ) is measured from the
beginning of each positive half cycle to the time instant when the gate trigger pulse is
applied. The thyristor conduction angle is from  to  , hence the conduction angle
     . The maximum conduction angle is  radians (1800) when the trigger
angle   0 .

The waveforms shows the input ac supply voltage across the secondary
winding of the transformer which is represented as vS , the output voltage across the
load, the output (load) current, and the thyristor voltage waveform that appears across
the anode and cathode terminals.
Fig: Waveforms of single phase half-wave controlled rectifier with resistive load

EQUATIONS

vs  Vm sin t  the ac supply voltage across the transformer secondary.

Vm  max. (peak) value of input ac supply voltage across transformer

secondary.
vO  vL  the output voltage across the load ; iO  iL  output (load)
[Link] the thyristor is triggered at t  (an ideal thyristor behaves
as a closed switch) and hence the output voltage follows the input supply
voltage.

vO  vL  Vm sin t ; for t   to , when the thyristor is on

TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE AVERAGE (DC) OUTPUT VOLTAGE

ACROSS THE LOAD

1 𝜋 1 𝜋 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑑𝑐 = 𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = ∫ 𝑣𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (1 + 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼)
2𝜋 𝛼 2𝜋 𝛼 2𝜋

The average dc output voltage can be varied by varying the trigger angle 
 from 0 to a maximum of 1800  radians .
TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE RMS VALUE OF OUTPUT
VOLTAGE OF A SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER
WITH RESISTIVE LOAD

1 𝜋 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛2𝛼
𝑣𝑜𝑅𝑀𝑆 = √ ∫ 𝑣𝑚 2 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (𝜋 − 𝛼 + )
2𝜋 𝛼 2√𝜋 2

PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS OF PHASE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

Output DC power Pdc = Vdc Idc

Output AC power Pac = Vorms Iorms

Efficiency of rectification (Rectification ratio) = Pdc / Pac

Displacement factor (or) fundamental power factor = 𝑐𝑜𝑠∅

𝑉𝑠 𝐼𝑠1
Input power factor = 𝑐𝑜𝑠∅
𝑉𝑠 𝐼𝑠

Is is RMS value of supply current.

Is1 is RMS value of fundamental component of supply component.

SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH AN RL LOAD

In this section we will discuss the operation and performance of a single phase
half wave controlled rectifier with RL load. In practice most of the loads are of RL
type. For example if we consider a single phase controlled rectifier controlling the
speed of a dc motor, the load which is the dc motor winding is an RL type of load,
where R represents the motor winding resistance and L represents the motor winding
inductance.
A single phase half wave controlled rectifier circuit with an RL load using a
thyristor T1 ( T1 is an SCR) is shown in the figure below.

The thyristor T1 is forward biased during the positive half cycle of input
supply. Let us assume that T1 is triggered at t   , by applying a suitable gate
trigger pulse to T1 during the positive half cycle of input supply. The output voltage
across the load follows the input supply voltage when T1 is ON. The load current

iO flows through the thyristor T1and through the load in the downward direction. This

load current pulse flowing through T1 can be considered as the positive current pulse.

Due to the inductance in the load, the load current iO flowing through T1 would not
fall to zero at t   , when the input supply voltage starts to become negative. A
phase shift appears between the load voltage and the load current waveforms, due to
the load inductance.
The thyristor T1 will continue to conduct the load current until all the inductive
energy stored in the load inductor L is completely utilized and the load current
through T1 falls to zero at t   , where  is referred to as the Extinction angle,
(the value of t ) at which the load current falls to zero. The extinction angle  is
measured from the point of the beginning of the positive half cycle of input supply to
the point where the load current falls to zero.
The thyristor T1 conducts from t   to  . The conduction angle of T1 is
       , which depends on the delay angle  and the load impedance angle  . The
waveforms of the input supply voltage, the gate trigger pulse of T1, the thyristor current,
the load current and the load voltage waveforms appear as shown in the figurebelow

i1  iO  iS

Fig.: Input supply voltage & Thyristor current waveforms

 is the extinction angle which depends upon the load inductance value.

Fig.: Output (load) voltage waveform of a single phase half wave

controlled rectifier with RL load

From  to 2 , the thyristor remains cut-off as it is reverse biased and

behaves as an open switch. The thyristor current and the load current are zero and the
output voltage also remains at zero during the non conduction time interval between
 to 2 . In the next cycle the thyristor is triggered again at a phase angle of
2    , and the same operation repeats.

TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE OUTPUT (INDUCTIVE LOAD)

CURRENT, DURING t   to  WHEN THYRISTOR T1 CONDUCTS

Considering sinusoidal input supply voltage we can write the expression for
the supply voltage as

vS  Vm sin t = instantaneous value of the input supply voltage.

 Let us assume that the thyristor T1 is triggered by applying the gating signal to
T1 at t   . The load current which flows through the thyristor T1 during t   to

 can be found from the equation

𝑑𝑖𝑜
𝐿 + 𝑅𝑖𝑜 = 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝜔𝑡
𝑑𝑡

The solution of the above differential equation gives the general expression for
the output load current which is of the form
𝑉𝑚 −𝑅(𝜔𝑡−𝛼)
𝑖𝑜 = [sin(𝜔𝑡 − ∅) + sin(𝛼 − ∅)𝑒 𝜔𝐿 ]
𝑍
Where Z = √𝑅 2 + (𝜔𝐿)2
𝜔𝐿
∅ = tan−1
𝑅
TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR AVERAGE (DC) LOAD VOLTAGE
𝛽
1 1 𝛽 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = ∫ 𝑣𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼 − 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛽)
2𝜋 𝛼 2𝜋 𝛼 2𝜋

Note: During the period t  to  , we can see from the output load voltage

waveform that the instantaneous output voltage is negative and this reduces the
average or the dc output voltage when compared to a purely resistive load.
Average DC Load Current
𝑣𝑚
𝐼𝑜𝑑𝑐 = (𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼 − 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛽)
2𝜋𝑅

SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH RL LOAD AND FREE
WHEELING DIODE
T
i0
+

R V0

+ ~ FWD

Vs




Fig. : Single Phase Half Wave Controlled Rectifier with RL Load and Free Wheeling
Diode (FWD)
With a RL load it was observed that the average output voltage reduces. This
disadvantage can be overcome by connecting a diode across the load as shown in
figure. The diode is called as a Free Wheeling Diode (FWD). The waveforms are
shown below.
Vs Vm
Supply voltage

0    t


iG
Gate pulses -Vm

0 t


O Load

current

t=
0 t
   
 2

O Load voltage

0    t

At t   , the source voltage vS falls to zero and as vS becomes negative,
the free wheeling diode is forward biased. The stored energy in the inductance
maintains the load current flow through R, L, and the FWD. Also, as soon as the
FWD is forward biased, at t   , the SCR becomes reverse biased, the current
through it becomes zero and the SCR turns off. During the period t   to  , the
load current flows through FWD (free wheeling load current) and decreases
exponentially towards zero at t   .
Also during this free wheeling time period the load is shorted by the
conducting FWD and the load voltage is almost zero, if the forward voltage drop
across the conducting FWD is neglected. Thus there is no negative region in the load
voltage wave form. This improves the average output voltage.
The average output voltage Vdc Vm
 1 cos  , which is the same as that of a
2
purely resistive load. The output voltage across the load appears similar to the output
voltage of a purely resistive load.
The following points are to be noted.
 If the inductance value is not very large, the energy stored in the
inductance is able to maintain the load current only upto t   ,
where     2 , well before the next gate pulse and the load current
tends to become discontinuous.
 During the conduction period  to  , the load current is carried by the
SCR and during the free wheeling period  to  , the load current is
carried by the free wheeling diode.
 The value of  depends on the value of R and L and the forward
resistance of the FWD. Generally     2 .

If the value of the inductance is very large, the load current does not decrease
to zero during the free wheeling time interval and the load current waveform appears
as shown in the figure.

i0
t1 t2 t3 t4

SCR FWD SCR FWD

   
0 2 t

Fig. : Waveform of Load Current in Single Phase Half Wave Controlled

Rectifier with a Large Inductance and FWD
 During the periods t1, t3,... the SCR carries the load current and during the

periods t2 , t4 ,..... the FWD carries the load current.

It is to be noted that
 The load current becomes continuous and the load current does not fall to
zero for large value of load inductance.
 The ripple in the load current waveform (the amount of variation in the
output load current) decreases.

SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH A GENERAL LOAD

A general load consists of R, L and a DC source ‘E’ in the load circuit

iO
R
+
vS vO
~ L
 +
E

In the half wave controlled rectifier circuit shown in the figure, the load circuit
consists of a dc source ‘E’ in addition to resistance and inductance. When the thyristor
is in the cut-off state, the current in the circuit is zero and the cathode will be at a
voltage equal to the dc voltage in the load circuit i.e. the cathode potential will be
equal to ‘E’. The thyristor will be forward biased for anode supply voltage greater
than the load dc voltage.
When the supply voltage is less than the dc voltage ‘E’ in the circuit the thyristor is
reverse biased and hence the thyristor cannot conduct for supply voltage less than the
load circuit dc voltage.
The value of t at which the supply voltage increases and becomes equal to
the load circuit dc voltage can be calculated by using the equation Vm sin t  E . If
we assume the value of t is equal to  then we can write Vm sin   E . Therefore 

 E
is calculated as   sin
1
.
 
 Vm 

For trigger angle    , the thyristor conducts only from t   to  .

For trigger angle    , the thyristor conducts from t   to  .

The waveforms appear as shown in the figure

 v Vm
O

Load voltage

 
0   

t

O
 
Im
i Load current
0
   

t

supply voltage .
Equations
Input

vS  Vm sin t 

vO  Vm sin t  Output load voltage for t   to 


vO  E for t  0 to  & for t   to 2

Expression for the Load Current

When the thyristor is triggered at a delay angle of  , the equation for the circuit can
be written as

𝑑𝑖𝑜
𝐿 + 𝑅𝑖𝑜 + 𝐸 = 𝑉𝑚 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝜔𝑡 ; 𝛼 ≤ 𝜔𝑡 ≤ 𝛽
𝑑𝑡


The general expression for the output load current can be written as
𝑉𝑚 𝐸 𝐸 𝑉𝑚 −𝑅(𝜔𝑡−𝛼)
𝑖𝑜 = sin(𝜔𝑡 − ∅) − + [ − sin(𝛼 − ∅)] 𝑒 𝜔𝐿
𝑍 𝑅 𝑅 𝑍
The Extinction angle  can be calculated from the final condition that the
output current iO  0 at t   . 

To derive an expression for the average or dc load voltage
𝛼
1 1 𝛽 1 2𝜋
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝐸 𝑑𝜔𝑡 + ∫ 𝑣𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 + ∫ 𝐸 𝑑𝜔𝑡
2𝜋 0 2𝜋 𝛼 2𝜋 𝛽

𝑣𝑚 𝐸
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = (𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼 − 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛽) + [2𝜋 − 𝛽 + 𝛼]
2𝜋 2𝜋

Conduction angle of thyristor       


RMS Output Voltage can be calculated by using the expression

VO RMS  



DISADVANTAGES OF SINGLE PHASE HALF WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

Single phase half wave controlled rectifier gives

 Low dc output voltage.
 Low dc output power and lower efficiency.
 Higher ripple voltage & ripple current.
 Higher ripple factor.
 Low transformer utilization factor.
 The input supply current waveform has a dc component which can result in dc
saturation of the transformer core.

Single phase half wave controlled rectifiers are rarely used in practice as they
give low dc output and low dc output power. They are only of theoretical interest.
The above disadvantages of a single phase half wave controlled rectifier can
be over come by using a full wave controlled rectifier circuit. Most of the practical
converter circuits use full wave controlled rectifiers.

SINGLE PHASE FULL WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIERS

Single phase full wave controlled rectifier circuit combines two half wave
controlled rectifiers in one single circuit so as to provide two pulse output across the
load. Both the half cycles of the input supply are utilized and converted into a uni-
directional output current through the load so as to produce a two pulse output
waveform. Hence a full wave controlled rectifier circuit is also referred to as a two
pulse converter.
Single phase full wave controlled rectifiers are of various types
 Single phase full wave controlled rectifier using a center tapped
transformer (two pulse converter with mid point configuration).
 Single phase full wave bridge controlled rectifier
▪ Half controlled bridge converter (semi converter).
▪ Fully controlled bridge converter (full converter).
SINGLE PHASE FULL WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER USING A CENTER TAPPED
TRANSFORMER

iS T1
A
+
vO
vS
R L
AC O iO
Supply
FWD

T2
vS = Supply Voltage across the upper half of the transformer secondary

winding

vS  vAO  Vm sin t

vBO  vAO  Vm sin t  supply voltage across the lower half of the
transformer secondary winding.

This type of full wave controlled rectifier requires a center tapped transformer
and two thyristors T1 an T2 . The input supply is fed through the mains supply

transformer, the primary side of the transformer is connected to the ac line voltage
which is available (normally the primary supply voltage is 230V RMS ac supply
voltage at 50Hz supply frequency in India). The secondary side of the transformer has
three lines and the center point of the transformer (center line) is used as the reference
point to measure the input and output voltages.
The upper half of the secondary winding and the thyristor T1 along with the
load act as a half wave controlled rectifier, the lower half of the secondary winding
and the thyristor T2 load act as the second half wave controlled
rectifier so as to produce a full wave load voltage waveform.
There are two types of operations possible.
▪ Discontinuous load current operation, which occurs for a purely
resistive load or an RL load with low inductance value.
▪ Continuous load current operation which occurs for an RL type of load
with large load inductance.

Discontinuous Load Current Operation (for low value of load inductance)

Generally the load current is discontinuous when the load is purely resistive or
when the RL load has a low value of inductance.
During the positive half cycle of input supply, when the upper line of the
secondary winding is at a positive potential with respect to the center point ‘O’ the
thyristor T1 is forward biased and it is triggered at a delay angle of . The load current
flows through the thyristor T1 , through the load and through the upper part of the
secondary winding, during the period  to  , when the thyristor T1 conducts.
The output voltage across the load follows the input supply voltage that
appears across the upper part of the secondary winding from t   to  . The load
current through the thyristor T1 decreases and drops to zero at t   , where

   for RL type of load and the thyristor T1 naturally turns off at t   .

vO Vm


t
0 



iO 
    

() ()

Fig.: Waveform for Discontinuous Load Current Operation without FWD

During the negative half cycle of the input supply the voltage at the supply
line ‘A’ becomes negative whereas the voltage at line ‘B’ (at the lower side of the
secondary winding) becomes positive with respect to the center point ‘O’. The
thyristor T2 is forward biased during the negative half cycle and it is triggered at a
delay angle of     . The current flows through the thyristor T2 , through the load,
and through the lower part of the secondary winding when T2 conducts during the
negative half cycle the load is connected to the lower half of the secondary winding
when T2 conducts.
 For purely resistive loads when L = 0, the extinction angle    . The load
current falls to zero at t     , when the input supply voltage falls to zero at
t   . The load current and the load voltage waveforms are in phase and there is no
phase shift between the load voltage and the load current waveform in the case of a
purely resistive load.
For low values of load inductance the load current would be discontinuous and
the extinction angle    bu       .

For large values of load inductance the load current would be continuous and
does not fall to zero. The thyristor T1 conducts from  to     , until the next
thyristor T2 is triggered. When T2 is triggered at t      , the thyristor T1 will

be reverse biased and hence T1 turns off.

TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE DC OUTPUT VOLTAGE OF A SINGLE PHASE
FULL WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH RL LOAD (WITHOUT FREE WHEELING
DIODE (FWD))

The average or dc output voltage of a full-wave controlled rectifier can be

calculated by finding the average value of the output voltage waveform over one
T
output cycle (i.e.,  radians) and note that the output pulse repetition time is
2
1
seconds where T represents the input supply time period and T  ; where f = input
f
supply frequency.
Assuming the load inductance to be small so that    ,       we

obtain discontinuous load current operation. The load current flows through T1 form
t   to  , where  is the trigger angle of thyristor T1 and  is the extinction

angle where the load current through T1 falls to zero at t   . Therefore the average
or dc output voltage can be obtained by using the expression
1 𝛽 1 𝛽 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = ∫ 𝑣𝑚 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼 − 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛽)
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋 𝛼 𝜋

When the load inductance is small and negligible that is L  0 , the extinction
angle    radians . Hence the average or dc output voltage for resistive load is

obtained as
1 𝜋 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (1 + 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼)
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋
for resistive load, when L  0

THE EFFECT OF LOAD INDUCTANCE
Due to the presence of load inductance the output voltage reverses and
becomes negative during the time period t   to  . This reduces the dc output

voltage. To prevent this reduction of dc output voltage due to the negative region in
the output load voltage waveform, we can connect a free wheeling diode across the
load. The output voltage waveform and the dc output voltage obtained would be the
same as that for a full wave controlled rectifier with resistive load.

When the Free wheeling diode (FWD) is connected across the load

When T1 is triggered at t   , during the positive half cycle of the input

supply the FWD is reverse biased during the time period t   to  . FWD remains
reverse biased and cut-off from t   to  . The load current flows through the
conducting thyristor T1 , through the RL load and through upper half of the
transformer secondary winding during the time period  to  .
At t   , when the input supply voltage across the upper half of the
 secondary winding reverses and becomes negative the FWD turns-on. The load
current continues to flow through the FWD from t   to  .

vO Vm


t


0 

iO

    

() ()

Fig.: Waveform for Discontinuous Load Current Operation with FWD

EXPRESSION FOR THE DC OUTPUT VOLTAGE OF A SINGLE PHASE FULL WAVE

CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH RL LOAD AND FWD

1 𝜋 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (1 + 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼)
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋

Thyristor T1 is triggered at t   . T1 conducts from t   to 

Output voltage vO  Vm sin t ; for t   to 


 FWD conducts from t   to  an vO  0 during discontinuous load
current

The DC output voltage Vdc is same as the DC output voltage of a single phase
 full wave controlled rectifier with resistive load. Note that the dc output voltage of a
single phase full wave controlled rectifier is two times the dc output voltage of a half
wave controlled rectifier.
CONTROL CHARACTERISTICS OF A SINGLE PHASE FULL WAVE CONTROLLED
RECTIFIER WITH R LOAD OR RL LOAD WITH FWD

The control characteristic can be obtained by plotting the dc output voltage

Vdc versus the trigger angle  .

The average or dc output voltage of a single phase full wave controlled

rectifier circuit with R load or RL load with FWD is calculated by using the equation
1 𝜋 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = (1 + 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼)
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋
CONTINUOUS LOAD CURRENT OPERATION (WITHOUT FWD)
For large values of load inductance the load current flows continuously
without decreasing and falling to zero and there is always a load current flowing at
any point of time. This type of operation is referred to as continuous current
operation.
Generally the load current is continuous for large load inductance and for low
trigger angles.
The load current is discontinuous for low values of load inductance and for
large values of trigger angles.
The waveforms for continuous current operation are as shown.

vO Vm

t
0

iO

   

 T2 ON
T1 ON T1 ON t
  
0  
  () ()
TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE AVERAGE OR DC OUTPUT VOLTAGE OF SINGLE
PHASE FULL WAVE CONTROLLED RECTIFIER WITH LARGE LOAD INDUCTANCE
ASSUMING CONTINUOUS LOAD CURRENT OPERATION.

1 𝜋+𝛼 2𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋

The above equation can be plotted to obtain the control characteristic of a single phase
full wave controlled rectifier with RL load assuming continuous load current operation.
VO(dc)

Vdm

0.6Vdm

0.2 Vdm

0
30 60 90 120 150 180
-0.2Vdm

-0.6 Vdm

-Vdm
Trigger angle  in degrees

Fig.: Control Characteristic

We notice from the control characteristic that by varying the trigger angle
 we can vary the output dc voltage across the load. Thus it is possible to control the
dc output voltage by changing the trigger angle  . For trigger angle  in the range
of 0 to 90 degrees i.e., 0    900  , Vdc is positive and the circuit operates as a

controlled rectifier to convert ac supply voltage into dc output power which is fed to
the load.
For trigger angle   900 , cos becomes negative and as a result the average
dc output voltage V becomes negative, but the load current flows in the same
dc

positive direction. Hence the output power becomes negative. This means that the
power flows from the load circuit to the input ac source. This is referred to as line
commutated inverter operation. During the inverter mode operation for > 90
load energy can be fed back from the load circuit to the input AC source.
TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR RMS OUTPUT VOLTAGE
The rms value of the output voltage is calculated by using the equation
1 𝜋+𝛼 𝑉𝑚
𝑣𝑜𝑅𝑀𝑆 = √ ∫ 𝑉𝑚2 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 𝜔𝑡 𝑑𝜔𝑡 =
𝜋 𝛼 √2

SINGLE PHASE SEMICONVERTERS

Errata: Consider diode

D1 in the figure and diode
D2 as D1 as D2

Single phase semi-converter circuit is a full wave half controlled bridge

converter which uses two thyristors and two diodes connected in the form of a full
wave bridge configuration.
The two thyristors are controlled power switches which are turned on one after
the other by applying suitable gating signals (gate trigger pulses). The two diodes are
uncontrolled power switches which turn-on and conduct one after the other as and
when they are forward biased.
The circuit diagram of a single phase semi-converter (half controlled bridge
converter) is shown in the above figure with highly inductive load and a dc source in
the load circuit. When the load inductance is large the load current flows continuously
and we can consider the continuous load current operation assuming constant load
current, with negligible current ripple (i.e., constant and ripple free load current
operation).
The ac supply to the semiconverter is normally fed through a mains supply
transformer having suitable turns ratio. The transformer is suitably designed to supply
the required ac supply voltage (secondary output voltage) to the converter.
During the positive half cycle of input ac supply voltage, when the transformer
secondary output line ‘A’ is positive with respect to the line ‘B’ the thyristor T1 and

the diode D1 are both forward biased. The thyristor T1 is triggered at t   ;

0      by applying an appropriate gate trigger signal to the gate of T1 . The

current in the circuit flows through the secondary line ‘A’, through T1 , through the
 T1 and D1 conduct together from t   toand the load is connected to the input
ac supply. The output load voltage follows the input supply voltage (the secondary
output voltage of the transformer) during the period t   to  .

At t   , the input supply voltage decreases to zero and becomes negative

during the period t  to     . The free wheeling diode Dm
across the load becomes forward biased and conducts during the period t  to  
.

Fig:. Waveforms of single phase semi-converter for RLE load and constant load
current for  > 900
 The load current is transferred from T1 an D1 to the FWD Dm . T1 and D1

are turned off. The load current continues to flow through the FWD Dm . The load

current free wheels (flows continuously) through the FWD during the free wheeling
time period  to     .

During the negative half cycle of input supply voltage the secondary line ‘A’
becomes negative with respect to line ‘B’. The thyristor T2 and the diode D2 are both

forward biased. T2 is triggered at t      , during the negative half cycle. The

FWD is reverse biased and turns-off as soon as T2 is triggered. The load current
continues to flow through T2 an D2 during the period t      to 2


TO DERIVE AN EXPRESSION FOR THE AVERAGE OR DC OUTPUT VOLTAGE OF A
SINGLE PHASE SEMI-CONVERTER

The average output voltage can be found from

1 𝜋 𝑣𝑚
𝑉𝑜𝑑𝑐 = ∫ 𝑣𝑜 𝑑𝜔𝑡 = [1 + 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼]
𝜋 𝛼 𝜋

The output control characteristic can be plotted by using the expression for Vdc.


SINGLE PHASE FULL CONVERTER (FULLY CONTROLLED BRIDGE CONVERTER)

The circuit diagram of a single phase fully controlled bridge converter is

shown in the figure with a highly inductive load and a dc source in the load circuit so
that the load current is continuous and ripple free (constant load current operation).
The fully controlled bridge converter consists of four thyristors T1, T2 , T3 and

T4 connected in the form of full wave bridge configuration as shown in the figure.
Each thyristor is controlled and turned on by its gating signal and naturally turns off
when a reverse voltage appears across it. During the positive half cycle when the
upper line of the transformer secondary winding is at a positive potential with respect
to the lower end the thyristors T1 and T2 are forward biased during the time interval
t  0 to  . The thyristors T1 and T2 are triggered simultaneously

t   ; 0      , the load is connected to the input supply through the

conducting thyristors T and T2 . The output voltage across the load follows the input
1

supply voltage and hence output voltage vO  Vm sin t . Due to the inductive load T1
and T2 will continue to conduct beyond t   , even though the input voltage
becomes negative. T1 and T conduct together during the time period  to     ,
2

for a time duration of  radians (conduction angle of each thyristor = 1800 )

During the negative half cycle of input supply voltage for t   to 2 the
thyristors T3 and T4 are forward biased. T3 and T4 are triggered at t      . As

soon as the thyristors T and T4 are triggered a reverse voltage appears across the
3

thyristors T1 and T2 and they naturally turn-off and the load current is transferred

from T1 and T2 to the thyristors T3 and T4 . The output voltage across the load

follows the supply voltage and vO  Vm sin t during the time period

t      to 2    . In the next positive half cycle when T1 an T2 are

d

triggered, T and T4 are reverse biased and they turn-off. The figure shows the
3
waveforms of the input supply voltage, the output load voltage, the constant load
current with negligible ripple and the input supply current.

During the time period t   to  , the input supply voltage vS and the input
supply current iS are both positive and the power flows from the supply to the load.
The converter operates in the rectification mode during t   to  .
During the time period t   to     , the input supply voltage vS is

negative and the input supply current iS is positive and there will be reverse power
flow from the load circuit to the input supply. The converter operates in the inversion
mode during the time period t   to     and the load energy is fed back to the
input source.
30