how can you turn an ac current to a dc current?

Question

i am working on a homemade wind turbine project and i need something compact that can convert an ac current to a dc to power a motor i am building and i has to be compact if you have an answers tell me where i can find one

my motor requires a dc current and how can you wire the rectifier if it has three strands whats the third one for

how do you know which strand points in and which points out on the rectifier or does it not matter

Answer 1

What you are looking for is called a bridge rectifier. It is one package containing four diodes arranged so that each of two AC inputs is directed to provide a more positive and negative output that is DC. It is usually good idea to place some capacitors on the DC output of the bridge rectifier to further filter and smooth the DC which will have a ripple on it that is twice the AC frequency. Your motor may not require this in order to operate. The bridge rectifier has four leads, two are wired to the AC, and two labeled + and - are the DC output. The devices are fairly small, usually have wire leads, and can be purchased with various voltage and current ratings. You should choose one that has a higher currrent and voltage rating than you intend to apply to it or draw from it.

You can also make your own bridge rectifier by wiring up four diodes properly. Commonly available 1N4001, 1N4002, 1N4004 diodes can be used for this.

Links below are on bridge rectifiers.

Answer 2

If your motor takes a DC input, find out the voltage and current rating and go buy a transformer/rectifier from an electronics store. A whole lot easier (and ultimately cheaper) than building one yourself. Of course, it depends on the current you'll need for your motor... if it's a large motor requiring a lot of juice, you might not be able to find a rectifier off the shelf for too cheap, but they're available.

Answer 3

I don't know if you have already bought your major components, or the design may have been dumped in your lap and you may have no choice. But if I were you, I'd try to get a dc generator to go with the wind turbine, so you don't have to bother with converting the current.

Even simpler, if you don't have to locate it too far away, try just running a belt. you can have a tall loop to the ground, then a short horizontal loop, or a shaft, in lieu of the motor on the ground. That would be the most efficient, as it would not require changing mechanical energy into electrical energy, then back again. Try a gear train or different sized pulleys if you need to change speeds.

Good luck!

Answer 4

What you want is a rectifier diode -- actually, four of them, which you can wire (or may come in a pre-wired package) in what is called a bridge configuration. Any electronics store (such as Radio Shack) can sell these. Before going to the store, determine the amount of voltage and current that your motor requires, so you can get an appropriate size.

Answer 5

Figure out how much wattage you need for the motor and what the voltage is, go to Radio Shack and get the proper sized RECTIFIER.
If you ever want to turn DC to AC, this would be an inverter.

Answer 6

That would be a relay. I prefer solid state relays generally. Check out Crydom's product line at the link below. If you are talking about an AC motor, then you want a VFD (variable frequency drive) which some folks also call inverters. I like TB Woods for those applications.

Answer 7

Use a step down transformer to bring down the voltage, then run it through a rectifier circuit to change to a DC output.

Answer 8

Power Transformer, full wave rectifier, filter, and voltage regulator. This is the best way but there are easier ways. I would look into buying one. Try jameco.com. They seem to have everything electrical engineering.

Answer 9

It requires a bit of fancy electronics (diodes, capacitors). I would suggest going to radio shack and buying a premade one for probably much cheaper.

Answer 10

Where are U,? till now not listened about, rectifiers (convertors) and, thyristors.?? Give me detailed specfication of your requirements, in Kw/Mw,(KVA/MVA),Max.Vol,Current,rotational speed,etc... and i will give you the static or dynamic convertor.