Patented Device Could Make Fluorescent Lighting More Efficient and Desirable
Lighting makes up 20% of electricity use in the United States. Greater use of fluorescent lighting would reduce energy use. Now a newly patented device from the Center for Power Electronic Systems (CPES) at Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA) has the potential to make fluorescent lighting even more efficient and desirable for many applications.
"Although fluorescent lights are about four times more energy efficient and last longer than conventional incandescent lighting, they are actually still wasteful," says CPES director Fred Lee. Every fluorescent light requires a ballast to provide starting voltage and limit current. With standard magnetic ballasts presently in use, only 60% of every watt results in light, Lee estimates.