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How about a glowing light source that lasts for 15 years instead of the typical 15 minutes of a glowstick? GlowPaint’s newest product does just that and is also non-toxic and inexpensive and doesn’t require a recharge via solar or electrical sources for its entire lifespan. According to the company, “This has potential to save billions in energy costs world-wide. Litroenergy™ surpasses all known available lighting options for cost/durability/reliability and safety.” Their products are expected to be used to replace other forms of safety, emergency and novelty lighting duties normally performed by glow sticks, LEDs and other light sources.
Originally posted by Mad_Hatter
Long lasting light is nothing new. Thomas Edisons original light bulb still works to this day. The light bulb companies make their products expire so that they will sell more. Think about it, if each light bulb never burned out then the light bulb company would go out of business eventually. More products are "made to be broken" than you realize. And this includes your car.
Originally posted by Mad_Hatter
Ok. Who gives a crap about a glowstick that lasts 15 years when you could have a light bulb that lasts 15 years. Maybe the efforts of humanity should be focused on something more important.
...doesn’t require a recharge via solar or electrical sources for its entire lifespan.
Originally posted by Choronzon
Durring WW2 the gauges of US airplanes were coated with a glowing phospherescent paint, which still glows to this day.
The problem is that it was mildly radioactive, and hence never released to the public.
Originally posted by Wildbob77
I think that this is a really cool product. Imagine you could paint curbs on sidewalks and/or the crosswalks so that they'd glow.
I like the paint on the bike in the pictures. I think that there are lots of safety applications where you could have the glow paint even if there had been a power failure.
Make sexual predators wear glow paint clothes so they can't hide in dark places (that's humor for those who might reply to that).
Paint the outside of phone booths so you could find them in the dark.
Think for a little bit and I'm pretty sure you could come up with a list of uses that would be relatively safe and fun.
Originally posted by mdiinican
I've got some training in industrial manufacturing engineering, so I'm gonna have to call this one.
That's not entirely the case. Edison's original light bulbs were horribly dim and energy inefficient by today's INCANDESCENT BULB standards. You'd be laughed at by customers if you tried to sell them to people today. Furthermore, the results were rather inconsistent. I'd venture to guess that the majority of his lightbulbs burned out quicker than modern cheapo 60w incandescent bulbs. I know of just one case where one of those light bulb has lasted to the present day, and part of that is because they never turn it off. Apparently turning on and off reduces the lifetime of bulbs.
Basically, most people would rather have a bulb that needs to be replaced every couple hundred hours than one that's about as bright as an oil lamp, and puts out a sickening yellow light. Otherwise, people would light their homes with high pressure sodium bulbs, as a compromise. Nowadays, though, compact fluorescents are just as cheap as incandescent bulbs (around here anyway), because of government subsidies. I'd certainly rather have a 24w compact florescent that lasts a few thousand hours than a thick filament incandescent that puts out a fraction of the light, using more electricity, but lasts longer. It's cheaper to use the fluorescents, even though you have to buy new ones. electricity isn't free.
I would laugh so hard if this Litroenergy thing turns out to be encapsulated tritium and phosphors. Those last 15 years, and do what glow sticks do.
EDIT: I looked it up. It is, haha. They just have a cool way of doing it, encapsulating the radioactive gas in tiny glass spheres that they put in paint or molded plastic. Somehow, I doubt this will sell well. Not too many people are fine with wearing radioactive products.
And planned obsolescence in cars ended just after the introduction of the catalytic converter and tighter emissions standards. Planned obsolescence worked through the 1960s because cars were simpler machines that didn't require expensive components. Companies could sell them for a small fraction of a person's yearly income, with the expectation that they would have to buy another one in three years or less, because it would break. Nowadays, Several expensive components are required by law, they have to be made to a certain level of quality and reliability to compete in the market. There are expectations of options like power windows and power doors and air conditioning and a radio and 100+ horsepower engine that still meets emission standards.
The result is that costs more *before profits* than a person can realistically be expected to keep buying every year or three. After profits, the cost is even more ridiculous. Cars today are built as a compromise between quality and cheapness of manufacture. You'll notice that if you *actually take care of them*, a car will easily last 100000+ miles before it becomes economically infeasible to maintain. Certainly, cars today are the most reliable than at any point in history. Hell, you can even get a few dozen thousand miles from one even if you *never change the oil, EVER*. After which, of course, the engine will seize irreparably.
They're made to *crumple like a wet paper bag in an accident* sure, but that's a different matter. Most people buy cars with a desire to survive possible accidents, not with the intention of playing GTA in real life. I think it goes without saying that running your
Originally posted by scarystuff
Mad Hatter, you just joined my ignore list for that lame U2U.. No reason to act like that, just cos you are to lazy to read the post before you start acting like a smart*ss that think he knows everything :-/
And a good day to you too...
Originally posted by 44soulslayer
Tritium is the stuff that British Armed forces' standard rifle sight the SUSAT uses to illuminate the outline of crosshairs, watch hands etc.
As such, tritium chemoluminescence is more of a "glow" than anything else... it would not be enough to light a room. And the green glow it gives off is sickly and would NOT be good for human health and psychology.
That said, these products may be very useful in a survival situation. 15 years is certainly a hell of a long life. A single tritium capsule could light up a bunker for the entire time you may be stuck in there.
The issue also arises of what to do with the product after youve used it? Releasing beta radiation sources would be disastrous. What happens when China tries to undercut and make this product at a lower cost- releasing tritium into the environment?
And above all, what if you want it to stop glowing?!
Ill stick to my 24W energy saving fluorescent bulb thanks
Depending upon the choice of isotope, one may obtain alpha, beta or gamma radiation and it has been found that alpha and gamma radiation are hazardous to health, leaving the beta radiators as the safe type for self-luminescence devices. By definition, the beta radiators emit electrons which are relatively heavy particles and exhibit less velocity.
Beta radiation can cause both acute and chronic health effects. Acute exposures are uncommon. Contact with a strong beta source from an abandoned industrial instrument is the type of circumstance in which acute exposure could occur. Chronic effects are much more common.
Chronic effects result from fairly low-level exposures over a along period of time. They develop relatively slowly (5 to 30 years for example). The main chronic health effect from radiation is cancer. When taken internally beta emitters can cause tissue damage and increase the risk of cancer. The risk of cancer increases with increasing dose.
Originally posted by mdiinican
That's what this is, only the radioactive tritium and phosphors are apparently inside tiny glass spheres, which apparently contain the radiation.
Originally posted by Freezer
I had an idea a while back about getting a crap load of this tritium paint, and a large solar panel and see if it could produce some current. Even if it was low, you still factor in that it would consistently put power out for years.