MIT reinvents the incandescent bulb

[IanC]

MIT: traditional incandescent light bulbs, reinvented, may make a comeback

Cool new technology may revive incandescent lights. A crystal enclosure only lets out visible light and recycles the IR to help heat the filament.

Got that? Lower energy IR is reabsorbed by the filament.

Actually there was a similar carbon fiber grill that did the same thing ten years ago but it withered on the vine because of the public unpopularity of incandescents at the time.

This new technology may have far reaching impact on all sorts of things that could make use of heat recycling.

 

[320 Years of History]

MIT: traditional incandescent light bulbs, reinvented, may make a comeback

Cool new technology may revive incandescent lights. A crystal enclosure only lets out visible light and recycles the IR to help heat the filament.

Got that? Lower energy IR is reabsorbed by the filament.

Actually there was a similar carbon fiber grill that did the same thing ten years ago but it withered on the vine because of the public unpopularity of incandescents at the time.

This new technology may have far reaching impact on all sorts of things that could make use of heat recycling.

Does that imply that if one were to mount one in an oven, it wouldn't need electricity to power it once the oven heats up? Just how hot does the filament need to get before it gives off visible light? (If the answers are in the article, just say so. I'll read it. I have not yet read the OP's referenced article.)

 

[SSDD]

coming soon

 

[IanC]

coming soon

Considering that the new technology is only raising the efficiency from 2% to over 6%, I don't think we have to worry about perpetual motion machines just yet.

 

[IanC]

this is the reason why incandescents are inefficient. they produce more IR than visible light. flourescents produce more visible light than IR but the mercury spikes give the output an odd mixture that many people find unfavourable.

LEDs are designed to turn the high intensity blue light into the visible spectrum.



a comparison of various common light sources-

it would be interesting to see the spectra from the incandescent bulb in the OP but I didnt see one. obviously they are trying to truncate the waste IR while retaining most of the visible light.