Queen’s University researchers shed light on more efficient compact fluorescent lightbulb

KINGSTON - Long touted as an energy-saving alternative for home lighting, compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) now have the potential to be even more efficient, as well as dimmable, thanks to research at Queen’s University at Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

The Queen’s researchers were motivated to solve two problems with CFLs – they don’t work with dimmer switches, and, more importantly, their energy efficiency is compromised because of a problem known as poor power factor. In effect, only part of the energy a CFL consumes is used to power the bulb, resulting in wasted power.

“Until now, the complicated circuitry needed to power these bulbs most efficiently has been too large and too costly for consumer-grade compact fluorescents,” says Dr. Praveen Jain, Canada Research Chair in Power Electronics at Queen’s University and a world expert on electronic power supplies. The Queen’s innovation is timely, he adds, as widespread use of today’s less efficient CFLs would reduce expected benefits to the global power grid.

The solutions emerged when John Lam, a PhD candidate working with Dr. Jain, developed a compact, simplified circuitry and controller design that overcomes the power problem while also meeting consumers’ need for a dimmable, inexpensive CFL.

PARTEQ Innovations, the technology transfer office of Queen’s, will work with major CFL manufacturers to bring the technology to market. The global market for compact fluorescents is estimated at $80 billion.

“This is an excellent example of university research providing an innovative solution well in advance of a potential market problem,” says John Molloy, President and CEO of PARTEQ. “The key to providing useable innovation is understanding the problems of existing technology and finding elegant solutions. Here we have a motivated researcher who saw a key problem and delivered the solution to an industry in need, in time to make a difference.”