What is Mercury-arc rectifier?
[[File:MercuryArcRectifier.svg|thumb|Diagram of a Mercury-arc rectifier]] A '''Mercury-arc rectifier'''<ref>''Electrical Year Book 1937'', Emmott and Company, Manchester, England, pp 180-185</ref> is a type of [[rectifier]] used for converting [[alternating current]] (AC) to [[direct current]] (DC). The cathode is made from a pool of liquid [[mercury (element)|mercury]]. Mercury-arc rectifiers were rugged and durable. They could carry higher currents than most other types of rectifier. The mercury-arc rectifier was invented in 1902 by Peter Cooper Hewitt. They were used to provide power for industrial [[electric motor]]s, [[Railway electrification system|electric railways]], [[tram]]s, and [[electric locomotive]]s. Other uses included radio [[transmitter]]s and [[high-voltage direct current]] (HVDC) power transmission. They were the primary method of high power rectification before the advent of solid-state electronics in the 1970s. The solid-state rectifier has since replaced the mercury-arc rectifier. ==References== {{reflist}} {{authority control}} [[Category:Rectifiers]] [[Category:Electronic components]]