Re: Cooler recifier diodes?
You could use schottky diodes that have a typical forward voltage drop of around 0.2V rather than around 0.6V for a silicon junction diode like the 1N5401. This would divide the watts lost in each diode by 3. The only disadvantage is that schottky diodes are only available with reverse voltage ratings up to 100V or so, but this is unlikely to matter for your application.
If the existing rectifier diodes are running hot it sounds as though under-rated diodes have been designed in or there may be a fault.
John
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