What Lurks behind the TRITIUM , waste not, want not.

[VidPro]

No this is not a discussion about radiation poisening, or radioactive waste. Its about getting the MOST out of a weak source of light.

As all GITD (glow in the dark) users know by now, if you put white behind the GITD , the reflection from the white, improves the glow, as opposed to a flat black light sucking surface.

now wouldnt the same thing apply with a tritium vial?
you cant get light to "pass back" through phosphors, without loosing most of it, but the light departing the sides, shouldnt go into a black hole.
couldnt the total light from a tritium tube be increased, if a black surface it sat against was made reflective or white first?

wouldnt the side light if reflected sneak past the phosphors on the inside ,and at least pass through the glass on that side?

what Methods can you think of to put reflective or white surfaces behind a tritiuam vial, and still achieve good attachment to various surfaces?

 

[Morelite]

From my tests, I have found that the vial appears brighter when the back surface is silver or white. I have also found out that completely filling the vial slot with clear epoxy (like Norland or similar) will reduce the amount of glow. It is best to just put a little glue in the bottom on the slot and press the vial into it, of course the vial will lose a little protection, but that should be a problem if the vials rests below the surface of the milled slot.

 

[kevinm]

Edmond Scientific carried optically clear epoxy; I'm not sure if they still do. I know there is epoxy that we used at the lab for gluing fiber optic fibers. That should not reduce the glow...

Kevin

 

[VidPro]

well i tried to use what i would use for other stuff, the mylar reflection, and it would not stay in the depression i had made for the vial, it acted like a vial spring instead
so trying to figure out what to do, i cut a tiny piece of alum foil for the reflection instead. that sunk in there, but was really still hard to keep in place.
its still drying now, but you can see tiny line of green glow hitting the side of the aluminum, adding another 1/4 or more to the total visual glow area.

theres gotta be a better way, some kinda reflective epoxy or somethin, arctic silver is somewhat reflective.
i dont know the properties of white-out, for turning it white, or how it would adhere.
i dont think the alum foil is going to improve the sticking, but in this case it was a big 23mm. the application was in black Abs Plastic.

would a person scrape off black annodising stuff? use the aluminum of the flashlight. i donno, theres gotta be a good technique for doing this to something that is NOW black.

 

[photorob]

Why don't you just paint the rear side of the tritium tube with white paint or nail polish.

 

[B@rt]

According to the manufacturer the best way to enhance the brightness is flat white paint on the back of the vial.

 

[VidPro]

so then coating the vial itself , prior to gluing it on, is probably a LOT less messy, and if you screw it up you can toss the vial (not that they are that cheap)
that still leaves adhesion, if the glue sticks to the white paint, then the vial falls out of the white paint , that aint gonna work.

soo, would have to get the fingerprints and oils off the glass, then sanding glass frost it, so mabey some 400-800 grit, could get a surface that paint would permanantally stick to.
and the ramifications of frosting the back of the glass? mabey improve the transmission of the back glow? lets see fiber optics are extruded glass, not unlike the tube, so the tube already IS a fiber optic of sorts. and frosting a fiber optic does something to it, i forget what?

 

[B@rt]

so then coating the vial itself , prior to gluing it on, is probably a LOT less messy, and if you screw it up you can toss the vial (not that they are that cheap)

Nah, you can just scrape it off with a knife.

that still leaves adhesion, if the glue sticks to the white paint, then the vial falls out of the white paint , that aint gonna work.

If you make sure the vial is oilfree, the paint will stick well enough to keep the vial epoxied in. For extra security make sure the ends of the vial are not painted to ensure good adhesion.

 

[Illum]

Edmond Scientific carried optically clear epoxy; I'm not sure if they still do.
Kevin

Ed's scientifics stopped stocking that for awhile now....
try CR scientifics...http://www.crscientific.com/epoxy-green.html

 

[lukus]

Home Depot (and maybe the other big boxes) carries super glue brand glass adhesive. It's in a red plastic syringe. It's made for glass, so it's very clear. Best of all, it sets with UV. If you have problems getting a vial positioned just right you can use a small bit, quickly zap it to gel it, and position the vial exactly where you want it. Add the rest of the adhesive and zap it for final.

It's great stuff, I used it to put vials in my HDS bezel and made a few lanyard glowrings. It's viscous and self leveling, no pesky bubbles. The best way to apply it is put a drop on a piece of cardboard and use a toothpick (dip it) to precision apply it.

I like filling the slot to level. If you just use enough to glue the vial in and leave the vial exposed, the slot will just gather lint and dust and cut down on the glow.