PROBING MYSTERIES OF THE INVERTER: PART I
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PHOTO COURTESY OF BEST ENERGY FOR TOMORROW
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Generating your own power doesn't mean you
have to give
up the convenience of AC living.
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by TJ Byers
The progress made in developing alternative sources of
energy over the last decade has demonstrated that
independent power systems (those using other than fossil
fuels) are not only possible but are also very practical.
In fact, a wide variety of generating equipment is now
available to allow individuals to take advantage of just
about any renewable source of energy.
For a number of reasons, however, most of these systems
produce only direct current (DC), and often do so only at
low voltages. Nonetheless, it's generally agreed that the
greatest potential use for alternative energy in the future
will be to serve alternating current (AC) loads ... since
those exist in the vast majority of modern homes.
Conventional refrigerators, most televisions, and
all induction motors (which comprise 97% of the
U.S. supply of electric motors) simply won't work on direct
current. Furthermore, although there are DC-compatible
substitutes for some such appliances, they're typically
quite expensive.
Of course, one way out of this dilemma would be to convert
direct current to alternating current ... and one of the
most effective ways to accomplish this is through the use
of an electronic inverter. In this ar ticle, I'm going to
tell you about the different sorts of inverters that are
available, and their applications. Then, in MOTHER
NO. 81, we'll get down to the details of putting one of
these devices to work.
AC POWER
To understand how inversion is accomplished, you should
first comprehend how AC power differs from DC. Compare the
voltage components of both types of power, as illustrated
in Fig. 1, and you'll see that in alternating current the
voltage is constantly reversed. The polarity (positive or
negative) switches rhythmically in the form of a sine wave.
On the other hand, the polarity of direct current is
constant ... that is, the positive lead is forever positive
(even though the voltage may vary).
The basic idea of an inverter, therefore, is to
periodically change the polarity of the DC source. Of
course, there is more than one way to approach the problem,
but semiconductors (such as transistors)—which
accomplish the metamorphosis by switching currents through
a transformer—are the most common solution.
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