Light Bulb Gas: What Bulbs use Gas?

FACTS CHECKED BY  Bob Smith

LEDs eliminate most older bulb technologies by using electrical components to generate light. But, this was not the case with bulbs like Halogen and Incandescent. Unlike LEDs, these bulbs need something to ignite to generate light. That’s where light bulb gas comes in. However, halogens and incandescents are not the only bulbs using gas to generate light. 

Keep reading to discover the different bulb types that use gas. We’ll also discuss if these gases are harmful. 

What type of Gases Can You Find in a Light Bulb?

Different hanging gas light bulbs

Different hanging gas light bulbs

Gases in light bulbs are called inert gases. These gases are particularly resistant to chemical reactions and can be compounds or elements. Interestingly, inert gases are incredibly stable and help to prevent filament combustion in bulbs. 

Argon is the most common inert gas found in bulbs. It helps prolong bulb life and stop tungsten filaments from deteriorating fast. Other gases in a light bulb include neon, krypton, helium, and nitrogen. 

Is it possible for Light Bulbs to Emit Gases?

In most cases, the gas stays inside the bulb. If the gas escapes at any point, your lamps won’t generate any light. Light bulbs generally won’t emit gases, except for cases where the bulb shatters or cracks. 

Are Gas Light Bulbs Harmful? 

Harmless/harmful cubes

Harmless/harmful cubes

Most gas light bulbs are not harmful to have around. The gas is only there to produce light, so the chances of it leaking out are pretty low. 

However, gas light bulbs can get dangerous if they crack or shatter. CFL and Fluorescent lights top the list of toxic bulbs because they contain mercury. 

What types of Bulbs use gas? 

Incandescent Bulbs 

Incandescent bulbs

The Incandescent bulbs

Incandescent bulbs are low-watt lamps containing a vacuum or nitrogen/argon mixtures. You can find vacuums in bulbs with watts ranging between 10W and 25W. Also, bulbs above 40W will use a nitrogen and argon mixture. 

Additionally, the bulb’s lead inner coating will absorb all traces of corrosive or oxidizing gasses. However, these reactions cause incandescent bulbs to produce high temperatures. You can deliberately use incandescent lamps as egg incubators, lava lamps, reptile tank lighting, industrial drying, and easy bake ovens. 

Moreover, incandescent bulbs can provide a maximum of 1,000 hours of light, making them less durable than other bulbs. In addition, water vapor can affect these bulbs, causing inner surface blackening. Water vapor and tungsten don’t mix and would generate black oxide. 

Halogen Bulbs 

Halogen bulb

Halogen bulb

As the name implies, these bulbs have a tiny amount of halogen, which contains methyl bromide/methylene bromine and argon. Interestingly, the tungsten filament combined with halogen creates the halogen cycle. 

The halogen cycle sends the evaporated tungsten back to the filament, helping to increase the bulb’s lifespan and reduce heat losses. Additionally, the gasses in halogen bulbs cause them to burn at higher temperatures, making them inefficient. Regardless, halogen bulbs can emit brighter visible light than incandescent bulbs. 

Plus, they have small sizes allowing them to fit in small optical equipment, like projectors. Moreover, it would help if you didn’t change these bulbs with your bare hands. Otherwise, the warmth of your hand and the reactions will warm up the bulb quickly and cause it to explode. 

Compact Fluorescent Bulbs

CFL bulb

CFL bulb

Argon is the most common gas used in CFL and fluorescent bulbs. Sometimes, you may find neon gas, but only in special cases. They’re the closest to LEDs in terms of energy efficiency and lifespan. 

However, these bulbs may pose health risks since they have mercury. If CFL bulbs shatter or crack, we recommend disposing of them immediately. And you’d need safe disposal methods to scrap damaged bulbs properly. 

LED Bulbs 

LED bulb

LEDs don’t have any toxic gases in them. What they use is helium gas. In truth, helium gas is a good heat conductor, and they help keep LED bulbs cool. They’ll also save you some cost on your heat bills. 

LEDs may contain smaller doses of toxic materials. But they’re minuscule enough to have zero effect on the average human. However, we recommend disposing of them properly and keeping them away from children and pets. 

Xenon Arc Lamps

These were the dominant bulbs of the early 20th century. You could find these bulbs in high-intensity light equipment like searchlights and movie projectors. Xenon arc lamps use high-pressure xenon gas to generate an intense white light. 

Undoubtedly, this high-intensity visible light was incredibly similar to natural sunlight. However, xenon lamps only offered 500 hours of usage time. And they require high power levels to operate. 

For this reason, users mostly cooled large xenon lamps in water to prevent heat losses. Interestingly, you can find xenon lamps today in movie projectors at cinemas. 

Why Noble Gases are Dominant in Bulbs

According to the periodic table, noble gases belong to Group 0. Also, six gasses exist in this group, including Xenon, helium, radon, argon, neon, and krypton. These gases possess the highest ionization energy & electron affinity and the lowest general element electronegativity. 

In other words, noble gases can’t react with other elements. More importantly, noble gases are popular in bulbs because they prevent damage and corrosion. Such situations occur if there’s air in the bulb’s environment due to electrical discharges. 

In Conclusion

Gases are crucial elements of light bulbs, as they help the lamps generate light. Generally, these gasses stay within the bulb, making them less dangerous. However, you should avoid leaving them around children or pets. 

If the bulbs suffer damage, we recommend you dispose of them safely and steer clear of the area because of the gas lingering in the air. Do you have any questions? Don’t hesitate to contact us, and we’ll be happy to help. 

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