The early 2000s were host to an electronics industry scandal that would have far-reaching effects resonating not just within consumer technology but in military hardware, too. A faulty electrolyte formula in the “Capacitor Plague”, so mass-equipment failure became the crisis popularly known as a result of it infiltrating the global supply chain.
Capacitors, integral parts that are present in all electronic circuits, are devices used for storing electric charge and energy. It is composed of two conductive plates with an insulator or dielectric in between. From 1999 to 2007, some prematurely failing capacitors started causing devices to malfunction, overheat, or even explode. This phenomenon was finally traced back to some faulty electrolyte formula used in non-solid aluminum electrolytic capacitors.
This crisis was due to industrial espionage. One former employee at Rubycon Corporation stole an incomplete electrolyte formula and resold it to some Taiwanese manufacturers. Since these manufacturers did not know about the flaws of the formula, millions of capacitors prone to corrosion, generation of gases, and finally bulging, leaking, or bursting components were produced.
The capacitor plague was devastating. Major brands of electronics were affected, amongst them Dell, Apple, HP, and even IBM. Specialist magazines first reported the issue in 2002, and it quickly gained public attention through blogs and online communities. It did not stop there; the crisis extended into military hardware, too, where reliability is paramount.
The capacitor plague has been a jolting reminder of two things: the quality control and intellectual property protection within the electronics industry. Second, it brought home how central capacitors are to modern technology and the sizeable effects that small mistakes could have on these everyday components. Indeed, one expert said, “The failures were across the board, drawing the attention of both academics and industry professionals.”
The consequences were most severe in the military sector. Faulty capacitors undermined the reliability of everything from communication devices to radar equipment. It also brought to light that this crisis had been the result of no proper quality assurance and risks due to cost-cutting and industrial espionage.
The lessons learned from the capacitor plague remain relevant to this day. Integrity in supply chains and high standards of quality control are needed to make sure no such crisis has to be faced again in the future. While the capacitor plague was a really dark chapter in the history of electronics, it gave significant experience both to the industry and the military.