A circuit in a home provides power to a light fixture. The homeowners want to use a compact fluorescent bulb instead of an incandescent bulb. Compact fluorescent bulbs can produce as much light as incandescent bulbs, but with less energy. How is this possible?
Fluorescent bulbs produce other forms of energy to including heat
Energy is destroyed when it passes through an incandescent bulb
Incandescent bulbs produce other forms of energy to including heat
Fluorescent bulbs have been designed to put out more energy than they receive
Fluorescent bulbs are more energy-efficient than incandescent bulbs because they operate on a different principle. Incandescent bulbs use a filament that heats up and emits light, but they also produce a significant amount of heat as a byproduct. Fluorescent bulbs, on the other hand, use electricity to excite gas atoms inside the bulb, causing them to emit ultraviolet light. This UV light then causes a phosphor coating on the inside of the bulb to emit visible light.
Due to this different mechanism, fluorescent bulbs are able to produce the same amount of light as incandescent bulbs while using less energy. They are able to convert a larger percentage of the electrical energy they receive into visible light, with much less being wasted as heat. Therefore, fluorescent bulbs are a more energy-efficient choice for illuminating a home.