Simple AC power question

Greetings everyone: Could someone offer an explanation according to:

- If a plug of a phone charger is slotted into a UK electricity socket, the phone charges as normal. However, if the socket is a low power socket, delivering only the phones power requirements (i.e. 3.7 volts), will this still charge the phone? (the phone charger plug has a 90 to 240 V spefication, will the 3.7 volts still pass through it?)

thanks in advance

If I understand you correctly?, and if I do it's a really silly question!, you're wanting to feed a mains powered charger from a 3.7V supply?.

Of course it won't work, you've already said it's clearly labelled 90V to 240V, in case you haven't noticed? 3.7V doesn't fall within that range!.

just double checking.

If i have a socket, which gets power from solar for example, and can only deliver i.e. 4 V's, a transformer could be used to up rate the electricity to match the charger plug spefication. However, how much electricity will the tranformer use in uprating the electricity?

timothyjackson said:

just double checking.

If i have a socket, which gets power from solar for example, and can only deliver i.e. 4 V's, a transformer could be used to up rate the electricity to match the charger plug spefication. However, how much electricity will the tranformer use in uprating the electricity?

Click to expand...

A transformer can't be used, because a transformer only works on AC, and a solar panel gives DC. The obvious solution is to bypass the charger all together, and charge it directly from the solar panel - although you would have to check how the phone would handle this?. You might also try using a car charger?, these accept 12V DC input, and you could use a 12V solar panel? - or at least take it apart and see what it does with the 12V.

grrr. ok. This is what i want to do:


have a solar panel on a window with a plug socket on it.

is their a create way to achieve this?

timothyjackson said:

grrr. ok. This is what i want to do:


have a solar panel on a window with a plug socket on it.

is their a create way to achieve this?

Click to expand...

Do you mean a 'mains socket', as you have on the wall?, three pin 230V AC in the UK.

yeah.

i know it sounds daft & I know you're an expert & im not. However, I just want to know if this can be creativley achieved. It would be so so so good.

You would have to have some immense solar panels (cover your entire roof!!) to get a good output of power and then use an inverter to get mains, you would have substantial losses within the inverter. The solar panels would cost a fortune and you would need a bright sunlight, then you would be transforming it back down to 3.7V, highly impractical!?

If you have a 12V solar panel then you could use a 5V regulator and then a potential divider with precision resistors to get the voltage you require for your phone, but you would still require some circuitry to prevent the battery from being overcharged.

Nigel gave a very good solution, to take a phone charger that is used in cars and either rip it open or connect it straight to your solar panel(s).

Hope this helps.

thats a shame.