Will aluminum foil replace the incandesent bulb?

[cchurchi]

http://www.livescience.com/technology/070613_aluminumfoil_lamps.html

If it works, is will definately be better for the environment then fluorescent.

 

[goldenlight]

Like so many new discoveries, this is many, many years from practical application, unfortunately. But it looks promising.

But I think we all agree that CFLs are only a problem ridden, stopgap measure in what needs to be a BIG push to cut electrical use worldwide, for all of the obvious reasons.

 

[Empath]

The article didn't seem to address the question of power savings.

 

[TorchBoy]

The article didn't address a whole lot of things, like what makes the light? Ionised gas? Nothing to ionise it. Really hot aluminium oxide? It melts at 2054°C, so any light would be very red. Besides, aluminium oxide is a thermal and electrical insulator. How many volts do these lamps run on?

 

[UncleFester]

From here, it seems to run on snake oil. (very environmentally friendly, as snakes are natural)

 

[Mags]

How bout reliability? Dont see anything about how long a unit like the one in the article can last.

 

[Empath]

There appears to be more data available through a Google search.

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

According to this article, "Values exceeding 30 lumens per watt are expected when the array design and microcavity phosphor geometry are optimized." While I realize it's still an emerging technology, I must admit I find it difficult to be optimistic about it's future when compared to the inexpensive T8 fluorescents lighting my garage, which give ~80 lumens/watt. I wish the experimentors, inventors, and investors well.

I'd like a screen for the bathroom skylight that gives me a "skylight" that works at night, too. :buddies: