In the modern world, one form of lighting can be found absolutely everywhere you look in public spaces, on buses, in offices, in schools, etc—fluorescent lighting. Despite its ubiquity, many misunderstand how fluorescent lighting functions. The elongated bulbs are glass tubes filled with argon or neon gases which are then injected with electrical current. This “excites” the mercury vapor in the aforementioned gases, resulting in the formation of plasma which then emits short-wave ultraviolet light rays.
The main advantage of fluorescent lighting over incandescent lighting (e.g. “regular” light bulbs) is efficiency—because fluorescent bulbs are able to better convert energy into usable light (instead of heat.) This means that fluorescent lighting runs at a lower temperature than its incandescent brother. This also saves the air-conditioning energy which it doesn’t need to cool down the heating air around the light sources. Longevity is definitely another high point: the average fluorescent light lasts 10 to 20 times as long as those in the incandescent category.
Fluorescent lighting does not need to be inconveniently long, however, as the new compact fluorescent light bulbs are becoming increasingly popular. These bulbs can fit in any regular incandescent light socket—the electronics are placed in the base of this type of fluorescent lighting. This has increased convenience by allowing users to simply switch between incandescent and fluorescent lighting at any time.
Although fluorescent lighting is used in the home, the bulk of it is deployed to schools and businesses across the country—the savings are actually quite attractive when considered on this scale. Australia will be instituting a total ban on the sale of incandescent lighting by 2010 in an attempt to reduce energy consumption. It is thought that incandescent lighting (and especially the compact fluorescent light bulbs) will be the main alternative. Join the future today and acquire fluorescent lighting for your domestic or professional settings.