Rectifiers / Regulators
The RECTIFYING or GRINDING valve is an electrical device that converts alternating current (AC) into direct current (DC). In practice they are Diodes, in the case of the vacuum tube, they can be single or double diodes (full wave). The rectifier can be made in various ways, in the case of valves it can be classic or mercury and be heated directly or indirectly. Its main use is in DC power circuits. The VOLTAGE REGULATOR is instead that electronic component used as a shunt regulator to maintain a constant voltage. Commonly also called Electronic or Vacuum Tubes, they are actually filled with a gas, have no filament and the cathode is not heated, so they are not Thermoionic valves.