Open Competition 3 - Electronics and Photonics

Surface Discharge High Intensity Ultraviolet Lamp Systems

Sponsor: Phoenix Science & Technology, Inc.

• Project Performance Period: 1/1/2002 - 12/31/2004
• Total project (est.): $2,393,172.00
• Requested ATP funds: $1,999,956.00

Ultraviolet (UV) lamps are widely used in industry, particularly in water treatment to disinfect and remove organic wastes. Existing lamps are quite limited, however, in intensity, spectral range and efficiency. Furthermore, the lamps used for water disinfection rely on mercury, a toxic element. Phoenix Science & Technology plans to develop technologies for UV lamps that offer higher intensity light and more efficient delivery than conventional systems, leading to lower lifecycle costs as well as environmental benefits. The three-year project will advance high-intensity, pulsed surface-discharge lamp technology from the laboratory scale to a practical design with a longer lifetime. Light intensity from commercial lamps is limited by degradation of the "envelope" that encloses the electric discharge; Phoenix will eliminate this envelope by using the surface discharge approach, in which the electrical discharge is on the outside of the tube that produces a light-emitting plasma. To overcome the inefficiencies of the mercury lamps, the innovative system will evaporate a small amount of silicon from the tube's surface, adding to the UV from the gas discharge and increasing the efficiency by up to a factor of 2.5. In addition, light losses will be reduced through the use of novel contoured reflectors. To package together a system with adequate lifetime, the company will need to find ways to prevent degradation of the lamp by high-pressure pulses, control erosion of the surface, and implement new reflector shapes while maintaining light use capabilities. ATP support is needed because private investors, although impressed by the market potential and environmental benefits, say there are too many unresolved technical barriers at this time. If successfully developed and commercialized, the new lamp technology is likely to become the industry standard for UV water treatment, including disinfection and remediation of organic waste, and enable the use of lamps for stripping paint off aircraft and other surfaces. The lamps will meet new federal standards for water and wastewater treatment and federal goals for stripping of lead paint from houses. In addition to saving money (due to higher efficiency) and more effectively destroying germs and contaminants, the lamps will reduce the use of chemicals and generation of toxic waste and eliminate the mercury disposal problem. Current markets for UV lamp technology and associated systems are worth several billion dollars annually. Over the long term, the technology could have other uses such as UV curing, surface cleaning, and sterilization.

For project information:

Dr. Ray Schaefer, (978) 251-9537
psandt@aol.com

ATP Project Manager

Francis Barros, (301) 975-2617
francis.barros@nist.gov