3 ms·
Electrolytic capacitors can dry out, boil out, oxidize, generally break down. There's many failure modes for them that can be caused by wear, age, or unuse.
by jdiff 4y ago
Electrolytic capacitors can dry out, boil out, oxidize, generally break down. There's many failure modes for them that can be caused by wear, age, or unuse.
- Gordonjcp 4y agoOnly if they're used grossly outside their rated limits. Whether or not the rated limits printed on the can match what they're actually capable of is another matter, as people found out for a couple of years in the early 2000s.
- camtarn 4y agoHere's another study for you, which shows a decrease in capacitance and increase in ESR (equivalent series resistance) of electrolytics operated in a DC-DC converter circuit at room temperature over extended periods of time. This shows that capacitors degrade even when used within their rated limits. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228874152_Experimental_Studies_of_Ageing_in_Electrolytic_Capacitors https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228874152_Experimen...
- jdiff 4y agoUnuse also can damage capacitors through oxidation. I've never seen a datasheet that said "make sure to stretch out your capacitor's legs at least once a year." Manufacturing errors can make capacitors die young, but even the most upstanding member of a capacitor tribe will one day kick the bucket through no fault of anyone's.