Diminishing Dia. Fiber Optics for Increasing Intensity Light

[BretCahill]

A math guy suggested blanketing the surface of fluorescent tubes with fiber
optics to increase the effective surface area -- and light -- per unit volume
of gas.

I said that would save the light otherwise lost due to spiraled and folded
fluorescent tubes and turn all the light in one direction but it would still
only result in a big area low intensity light source.

Unless fiber optics can be made to channel light down a fiber of diminishing
diameter.

Do tapered fibers exist?

My guess is a lot of light would bounce back to where it came from.


Bret Cahill

 

[Watson A.Name - "Watt Sun]

In article <20030928160011.15710.00000205@mb-m16.aol.com>,
bretcahill@aol.com mentioned...

A math guy suggested blanketing the surface of fluorescent tubes with fiber
optics to increase the effective surface area -- and light -- per unit volume
of gas.

I said that would save the light otherwise lost due to spiraled and folded
fluorescent tubes and turn all the light in one direction but it would still
only result in a big area low intensity light source.

Unless fiber optics can be made to channel light down a fiber of diminishing
diameter.

Do tapered fibers exist?

My guess is a lot of light would bounce back to where it came from.

I think that the whole idea of fluos is that they can be made cheaply
anbd put out a lot more light than incandescent. Going thru the
process of trying to improve them defeats the cheapness, because you
start adding complexity and that costs a lot. And they have a long
but limited lifespan, so if the price is too high, then they won't pay
for themselves over their lifetime. That's the wwhole reason why
incandescents only last for a thousand hours, because it would cost
more for the added electricity than a replacement light bulb.

Rather than try to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, your energy
should be concentrated on developing a light source that sidesteps the
disadvantages of the existing light sources. One I read about a while
back was a lamp that uses molten sulfur or something like that. It
was supposed to be more efficient than fluos and others. See Don's
lighting web page for info on that one and a lot of good info on all
these other neat gizmos. http://members.misty.com/don/light.html

Bret Cahill

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[BretCahill]

I'm guessing anything that has to do with
electrical lighting has been pretty well
investigated, the lightbulb being the very
icon of invention.

Watson A.Name - "Watt Sun" <alondra101@hotmail.com> in

Message-id: <MPG.19e0ef538fed71b989727@news.dslextreme.com> writes:

.. . .

I think that the whole idea of fluos is that they can be made cheaply
anbd put out a lot more light than incandescent.

My initial concern wasn't cost because
that usually drops dramatically with
volume.

I was just wondering what was possible.

In any event it's WAY too late in the day
for Thomas Edison style light bulbs to
appear in flashlights -- the ultimate
consumer item.


Bret Cahill