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Lamps and Lighting

Prior to 1880, burnt animal, vegetable and mineral fats and oils. Best described as the dark ages. Will only focus on post-1880 electrically driven light sources. Development of electrical lights lead to development of electricity supply. As far as we are concerned, electricity can be regarded as something akin to water out of a tap. When we want water, we turn on the tap. When we want energy for a given application we flick the switch and turn on the electricity.

The purpose of this lecture is to give a run-down on the various sources of electric light, and their applications to various tasks. Will divide light bulbs into 5 categories. Incandescent light bulbs (GLS) Tungsten-Halogen Lamps Mercury Vapour Discharge (MBF) Sodium Lamps Fluorescent Lamps

Temperature and Light

Objects emit radiations at different wavelength depending on temperature.

3000K

6000 K

When a body is at 6000 K, the visible regions of the spectrum are emitted most strongly. If you can heat an object to a sufficiently high temperature it becomes a useful (incandescent) light source.

Efficacy and Energy Besides emitting visible light, incandescent objects also emit EM radiation that is not visible. This will mainly be infrared light (wave length longer than red) although some ultra-violet (wave length shorter than purple) is emitted by some light sources. The Efficacy or Luminous Efficiency is a measure of a light sources ability to convert electrical energy into visible light. For a light source
LumensEmitted Efficacy = RateofEnergyConsumption

The units of efficacy are in lumens per Watt (lm/W) where the Watt measures the rate of energy consumption. Economic cost of electricity. If you consume energy at a rate 1000 W for 1.0 hour you have used 1.0 kWhr of energy. This costs 14.0 cents. Generally, the higher the efficacy the more efficient the light source is at converting electrical energy into visible light. So high efficacy is desirable.

The incandescent light bulb (GLS)

The problem, heating a filament to 1000s of degrees to produce light. Need to prevent filament from destroying itself.

Edison made the first commercial light bulb in 1880. The filament (the part that is heated) was made from a carbonised thread. The filament itself was contained in an evacuated glass tube (a vacuum tube) to prevent it from oxidizing (burning out). In the modern light bulb, the filament is made of tungsten wire, usually coiled. The bulb contains some sort of gas filling which does not react with tungsten. The blackish coating with age is evaporated tungsten. The purpose of the filling is to reduce evaporate of the tungsten filament. When enough tungsten evaporates to cause a break in the filament the bulb fails. The incandescent lamp is sometimes called the general light service (GLS) lamp.

The incandescent light bulb (GLS) The Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) of a typical GLS light bulb is about 2800 K.

3000K

Conclusion, most of the EM radiation (> 90%!) emitted by the light bulb is emitted as useless infrared radiation. The best description of a light bulb is that it is a heater that emits some visible light as a by-product. The filament temperature can be increased, but this leads to faster tungsten evaporation. Lifetime of tungsten bulbs decrease rapidly as CCT is increased beyond 2800 K. Running bulbs at slightly more than stated voltages improves light output but reduces lifetime (projection equipment).

The incandescent light bulb (GLS) Incandescent light bulbs come with 3 surface finishes
Clear Pearl (the interior surface is etched) Inside-white (interior surface coated with silica, titania or similar). Much better diffusion of light.

The efficacy of incandescent bulbs ranges from about 10 lm/W to about 20 lm/W. Lower wattage bulbs have lower efficacies than higher wattage bulbs. Pearl and Clear bulbs have the same efficacy, while inside-white bulb have 4-8% lower efficacy. Evaporation of tungsten and deposition on bulb surface causes some blackening of the bulb and loss of efficacy.

Some incandescent bulb properties Type 100 W GLS 1000 W GLS 1000 W Infrared CCT 2,700 2,900 2,450 Efficacy (lm/W) 11.6 17.3 8.0 Lifetime (hrs) 1,000 1,000 5,000

The lifetime of the bulb is best interpreted as the amount of time a collection of bulb will stay on before half of them fail. The CRI of most incandescent GLS bulbs is 100.

The tungsten-halogen lamp The filament temperature determines efficacy of lamp and its lifetime. The halogens are elements like fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine that are chemically very reactive. The bulb filling includes halogen gas. Evaporated tungsten combine with halogen to form a tungsten halide. The bulb surface is maintained at temperatures greater than 250 oC to prevent condensation of the halide on the bulb surface. Convection corrections created by the filament keep the halide swirling around the bulb, until it passes near the filament where chemical reactions take place resulting in the tungsten being redeposited back on the filament. (The halogen gas supply is also replenished). The process of evaporation and re-deposition is called the tungsten-halogen regenerative cycle. The bulb is made of fused silica (quartz) to withstand the 250 oC. To keep the temperature high means the bulb itself must be kept small.

The advantages of these lamps are

Improved efficacy. The bulb can be run at slightly higher temperature. Efficacies range from 18-24 lm/W. The CCT is 100 K larger than incandescent bulbs. Have CRI = 100. Longer lifetime as the tungsten filament lasts longer. Lifetimes range from 2000-4000 hours.

Due to more complicated construction tungstenhalogen lamps are more expensive than normal GLS lamps. Bulb is smaller due toesstungsten deposition. Typical applications include indoor and outdoor floodlights and spotlights. Also used as display and projection lights.

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Discharge Lamps. Discharge Lamps have completely different operating properties to incandescent lamps. Incandescent: The physical mechanism for light production is the passage of an electric current through a conducting solid. Discharge: The physical mechanism for light production is the passage of an electric current through a gas. Atoms consist of negatively charged electrons whizzing around a positively charge nucleus. The atoms and molecules in a gas are electrically neutral.

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Physical Principles of electric discharges

At the start high voltage is required to establish the initial electric current. The electric current is flowing through a gas and it is necessary to rip electrons away from the cathodes. These electrons are accelerated backwards and forwards by the AC voltage of the power supply. These electrons collide with the gas molecules, sometimes promoting them to excited states. The excited states eventually decay, emitting EM radiation at certain discrete wavelengths. The excited states do not emit an even rainbow like spectrum, rather radiation is emitted as a series of discrete spectral lines. Poor colour rendering.

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Properties of electric discharge lamps Discharge lamps often require special conditions at start-up. Often high-voltage pulse is required. Discharge lamps require a ballast (choke) once they are going to keep the current at the optimal level. Once the current is established, the resistance of the gas to the passage of the electric current decreases. The choke prevents the current from becoming too large. The electric circuitry for discharge lamps is of necessity more complicated than incandescent lamps. It is common to call all of the circuitry required to control the lamp the ballast.

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Low pressure sodium (SOX) The low pressure sodium light is the most energy efficient light bulb in existence. Sometime listed as SOX. More than 50% of the electrical energy can be converted into light. They have an efficacy of more than 100 lm/W, with 180 lm/W being possible. They are normally long lasting, lifetimes of 18,000 hours.

Almost all of the light emitted has a wavelength of 590 nm, so the lamp is best described as a monochromatic light source. It has a CRI of 0!

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Application of SOX lamps

The monochromatic light does not help visual performance. But the light emitted is close to the wavelength where the rods of the retina detect light most efficiently.
Used for outdoor, roadway, parking lot, and pathway lighting. Also used around astronomical observatories because the yellow light can be filtered out of the random light surrounding the telescope.

The lights on the side of the welding shed (facing Bld 41 car-park) are sodium lights. Lights behind auditorium. SOX lamps do not attract mosquitos.

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The fluorescent tube The normal fluorescent tube is based upon a mercury discharge. Most of the EM radiation by the discharge tube is non-visible ultra-violet (UV) radiation at wavelengths of 254 and 185 nm.

The outside surface of the tube is coated with a fluorescent coating or phosphor. The UV light emitted by the tube is absorbed by the phosphor. The phosphor then re-emits visible light. Energy conversion of mercury lamp Clear Mercury 62% 35% 3% With phosphor 80% 20%

Heat/Infrared UV light Visible light

(Note, so called black-light tubes are fluorescent tubes that permit some of the UV light to pass through the wall of the tube. Applications; discos (makes your white shirt glow) and black-light signatures.

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Properties of fluorescent tube lamps Fluorescent tubes have much longer lifetimes than incandescent bulbs. Typical lifetimes would be 8,000-10,000 hours. The efficacy of the general lighting lamps ranges from 40 lm/W to 70 lm/W. The CCT or CRI of the light emitted is determined by the properties of the phosphor and the light they emit. The cost of the lamp is also determined by the phosphor. Most general office lamps are halo-phosphates (calcium, antimony, chlorine, fluorine, manganese). With no manganese, light is blue. As more manganese is added the light goes from blue-white white yellow white. However, efficacy goes down as colour rendering improves. With tri-phosphor lamps it is possible to achieve high light-output (high efficacy) and good colour rendering. Three phosphors can emit light in separate red, green and blue bands. The CCT ranges from 2600 6500 K. The colour rendering classes range from class 3 to class 1A.

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Frequency control The normal fluorescent lamp runs at 50 Hz. However special high frequency lamps that run at 30,000 Hz exist. The advantage of these high-frequency lamps

Easier start-up. Higher efficacy Improved lifetime Less energy lost in ballast Less lamp flicker (the electricity supply is AC so light intensity is continually varying). Can eliminate stroboscope effect when dealing with rotating machinery.

The efficacy can be around 30% larger. Suitable for most large buildings that use fluorescent tubes. Expect most lights to be driven at 30,000 Hz in future. Dimming control In order to dim fluorescent tubes it is necessary to control the temperature of the filaments at the two ends of the tube. This requires special control circuitry additional to that already used. Dimming of GLS lamps is trivial.

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Different fluorescent lamp types One of the most important factors is choosing a light is the quality of phosphor. The CCT is of less importance than the CRI for fluorescent lamps. Lamp type Cool white (CW) White (W) Warm White (WW) Daylight Deluxe Warm White Deluxe cool white CRI 66 60 70 79 73 89 Efficacy (lm/W) 65 70 69 40 62 40

Lamps with higher CRI can sometimes have lower efficacies. Be aware that cheap lights with cheap phosphors do exist. Sub-standard fluorescent lamps are very dissatisfying (avoid purchasing a no-name bulb).

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Why fluorescent tubes are long

The major energy losses in a fluorescent tube occur near the cathodes (i.e. at the ends of the lamp). Any fluorescent tube only has two cathodes. By making the tubes longer, the relative impact of energy losses become smaller. The maximum practical lamp sizes are 1.20 m for a 16 mm diameter lamp. For a 38 mm diameter lamp the maximum length is 2.40 m.

Narrow fluorescent tubes There has been a reduction in diameter of fluorescent tubes in recent years. Tube surface area is smaller, but must produce same amount of light. The luminance of the surface of the tube must be larger. Need to be more careful about glare produced by narrow diameter fluorescent tubes.

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Performance with age

The more modern tri-phosphor lamps (sometimes called Rare Earth lamps) maintain their light output better then old-style halo-phosphor lamps.

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Compact fluorescent lamps (PL, CFL) Normal fluorescent lamps are quite large and can only be used in fittings with the right circuitry. The compact fluorescent is a lamp that could be used in existing incandescent fittings.

They are bulkier than normal bulbs since the ballast has to be built into the bulb. Aimed at the home market. Problem, do not fit in all light fittings, more important for the higher output bulbs. Also electronics need to be kept cool.

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Compact fluorescent lamps (PL, CFL)

Need to have warm-white phosphors to be suitable for domestic market. Require CRI of 70 or above. New niche, down-lights for large area public lighting. Corridors (bulding 24) and shopping malls. Ballast part of fixture so only tube needs to be supplied.

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High pressure sodium (SON) Low pressure sodium lamps produce mainly yellow light. By increasing pressure (and temperature inside the lamp) one can get a much more even light spectrum, the whole spectral output broadens to give a whitish glow, sometimes with a gold/yellowish tinge. The improvement in the CRI is at the cost of reduced efficacy. The efficacy ranges from 50 lm/W 120 lm/W. The CRI ranges from 70 20. A higher CRI gives lower efficacy. Car parks, street lighting, building flood-lighting. Not suitable for interior lighting due to poor CRI.

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Other lamp lights Most of the other lamp types do not have much use in interior design except for specialized purposes. High pressure mercury (MBF) lamps Reasonable CRI 20-60. Efficacy 40-60 lm/W. Efficacy often better for lamps with highest wattage. Can have 1000 W lights. A 1000 W light emits a lot of light, e.g. efficacy of 500 means 5000 lumen. Used in outdoor lighting, e.g. streetlighting, some times mixed with incandescents in display lighting.

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Metal halide lamps (MBI) Color rendition of Mercury Lamps not satisfactory. Other metals added to lamp (as halides) to give a better spectrum. Other metals include sodium, thallium, dysprosium, indium. MBI and MBF sometimes called High Intensity Discharge (HID) lamps. CRI 60-80 Efficacy 60-110 lm/W. Efficacy often better for lamps with highest wattage. Can have 2000 W lights (e.g. 20000 lumen!) CCT from 3000 K to 20000 K (very yellow to very blue) Application, sports stadiums, gymnasiums. Good for night-time sports lighting. Also used to applications which require blue and ultra-violet light. 3-5 minute start-up time.

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Light emitting diodes (LED) This may be a light source for the future. Sometimes called SSL, Solid State Lighting. Apply a voltage to certain semi-conductors and they emit light. Research in area has been driven by two other applications Computer screens. More compact. The bigger the screen on a normal monitor the larger the rest of the tube. This is not the case with LED screens.

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Laser Diodes. To read and write information from etched surfaces (650 Mbyte information on CD, 1.44 Mbyte information on floppy disk!). Initial CDs used red light, but now blue light CDs are available. So with Red, Green and Blue LEDs, possibility of making a continuous colour distribution exists. Possibly, CRI close to 100. Features
Hard to break, no vacuum tubes or filaments. Long lifetimes. 100,000 hours. Note, 20% loss of light is first 20,000 hours. Flexible Applications. Shape of light can be almost anything (lots of small light emitting areas). Taylor made color spectrums, good CRI, mood lighting. At the moment CRIs of 60-80.

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Light output is temperature dependent. Currently, development LEDs with efficacies of 100 lm/W (note higher efficacy = lower CRI).

Expensive but already LEDs produce light more efficiently than incandescent technologies. Niche applications at present, more widespread usage in future?

Predictions: CRI 90-100, efficacy > 100 lm/W cost = cost fluorescent tube

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Efficacies for lamps