UHP mercury lamp cold start.

I got this ultra high pressure Hg lamp from an LCD rear projection TV. Quite an intriguing television it was. The lamp is a 120/132 watt Philips. I have a small squirrel cage fan blowing into the lamp. It might look like i am only using the suction to pull air across the outside, but air is blowing right across the bulb inside the reflector.

I am using a MOT with 40v input. I should use a limiting capacitor or something, but the current is low enough due to the small 40v transformer i am using. I'd love to sell this, but there probably aren't a whole lot of people that want to buy one :-P

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• UHP
• hg
• mercury
• vapor
• light
• bulb
• lamp
• ultra
• high
• pressure

[triggerhappy77707]

@MkeFishguy I didn't use a ballast, per se. I used a step down transformer powering a step up transformer. The open circuit voltage was about 1kv, so it would start up easily. When the gasses in the bulb broke down the current increased so the voltage dropped, and the current was limited by both the magnetic shunts in the step-down transformer and step up transformer, as well as winding resistances.

[MkeFishguy]

Nice! what are you using as a ballast?