Power supply using a voltage regulator? 1

[earthwalker]

I would like to inquire if a voltage regulator maybe used as a power supply to a system. I am not very familiar with EE stuffs so any help would be appreciated

Our system consists of aluminum metal plates submerged in water. It needs to be supplied with 10A (DC) thru the portion of the plate that is not submerged.

What I have is a voltage regulator with variable output. Its input is 220V and output maybe adjusted thru a knob from 0-250V and with maximum capacity of 12A.

My question is that will it suffice to serve as our power supply? Would the output be DC or AC? And am I right to say that what we are supposed to do is to adjust the voltage output until the current read is 10A? Thanks in advance.

 

[benta]

Sounds to me that what you have is a variable autotranformer. That will provide AC.
Does it look like this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Variable_Transformer_01.jpg

Benta.

 

[earthwalker]

yeah it does look like that. what do I need to connect to convert it to DC? and what should be the specs of that equipment? thanks for answering!

 

[benta]

Bridge rectifier, for instance Vishay GBPC2506-W

Benta.

 

[BrianG]

This is a potentially hazardous set-up: the variable transformer does NOT provide any isolation from the 220V mains supply thus the operator could touch one of the plates that has up to 250V on it. I strongly suggest you consult local industrial electricity regulations for the country where you are. At the very least you need an earth leakage circuit breaker on the input to the variable transformer to minmise a lethal shock hazard.

Unless you are trying to electrolyse pure water I don't think you should need anything like 250V on the plates (added electrolytes or residual impurities will make the ionisation voltage much lower than 250V, therefore consider using an isolating transformer between the output of the variable transformer and the bridge rectifier suggested by Benta. This should preferably have a secondary voltage of 30V maximum to avoid a shock hazard to personnel but should still provide sufficient electrolysis current if your plates have sufficient surface area (but see your regulations for 'wet' areas).

 

[VEBill]

BrianG is correct. It's not likely that you'll require anything above low voltage for any project involving plates in solutions. It's all about the current and just enough voltage to get the chemistry going.