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Electrical Relay Types

By Dustin Pitan, eHow Contributor

An electrical relay is defined as a switch that operates on electricity. While the first relays were used in long-distance telegraph circuits, by simply opening and closing a switch which produced beeps and silences (Morse code), they are now used for almost anything that involves low-power signals, or where several circuits have to be controlled by a single signal. Because of their immense presence in society and electricity, there are, therefore, also a large number of types of relays, as well.

Latching Relay

Latching relays, also called impulse, keep or stay relays, has two relaxed states instead of just one. So, while switching the relay on, the ratchets inside will flip the armatures and contacts into position, sending a pulse to the coil inside, while a magnet or the ratchet will hold it there. The second pulse of the coil, caused by switching the relay again, will turn the switch off. So, the relay must be switched twice in order for the full range of operations to be experienced.

Machine Tool Relay

A standardized relay for industrial control of machines is the machine tool relay. They often have a large number of contacts inside, but are very simplistic in most other ways. They offer easily accessible coils, and have the ability to add or subtract contacts as need be. Their conversion from open to close is easy and can be run for hours at a time. This was the relay backbone of the automobile industry's machines for many years, due to its ability to work quickly and efficiently.

Mercury-Wetted Relay

A mercury-wetted relay is a form of a reed relay where the contacts inside the gas-filled gas tube or vacuum are covered with mercury. Mercury-wetted relays are used to switch signals of under one volt on and off. Mercury allows lower resistance, has higher conductivity, and eliminates contact bounce, thus these relays are very effective. They are also very fragile and expensive (not to mention the toxicity of liquid mercury), so they are rarely used any more.

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Polarized Relay

A polarized relay is a type of relay that is also rarely used anymore. It was used often in the mid-20th century to increase the sensitivity of telephones, but also to eliminate distortion. Polarized relays had permanent magnets inside, with an armature placed in between its poles. The poles of the magnet could be adjusted, while a bias spring would allow the relays to operate.

Reed Relay

A reed relay is a relay with most of its components set inside a vacuum or inert gas. This protects the contacts from corrosion. Once the relay is switched on, a magnetic field flows through a coil which surrounds the gas or vacuum, which causes the contacts to close until the relay is switched off. Reed relays have a low switch current and low voltage ratings.

Contactor Relay

While most relays switch lower voltage switches, a contactor relay works mainly in electric motors and lighting loads, ranging from 10 amps to several hundred amps. They contain contacts that are made with silver, so that even when arching and oxidizing, the resulting silver oxide will conduct the charge. They and are often used for motor starters.

Solid-State Relay

A solid state relay (SSR) is a popular relay. It is a solid state electronic component that has no moving parts. This decreases the need for fixing, and increases the longevity of the relay. The commercially available SSRs are now able to handle 100 to 120 amperes.

Solid State Contactor Relay

A solid state contactor is a larger, more powerful version of a normal SSR. There are, again, no moving parts to wear out, but this relay is for constant on/off cycles as well as switching electric heaters or electric motors and lighting loads.

Buchholz relay

A Buchholz relay is a safety relay. It is a device that senses gas in oil-filled transformers. The relay will switch on, triggering an alarm or shutting down the transformer. This relay is not made for normal relay operation, but for safety purposes in addition to regular relays.

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