A “capacitor plague” wreaked havoc on electronic installations worldwide from 1999 to 2007, causing capacitors to explode or spew their liquid innards over nearby PCBs, strewing blame and accusations of stolen electrolyticformulas in its wake.
However, Asianometry’s recent video refutes this, highlighting a likely combination of factors that exacerbated the problem, including the introduction of low-ESR electrolytic capacitors able to produce more gas than legacy components, the increase in power consumption of electronics, and the proliferation of counterfeit components.
The plague coincides with the introduction of low-ESR electrolytic capacitors in the mid 1990s and the increased power consumption of (especially portable) electronics, stressing the capacitors in ways not previously encountered, in warmer environments.
The video also dismisses the narrative that the cause of the capacitor plague was the theft of an incomplete Rubycon formula, as this would not explain the breadth of the problem.
