Energy & Power

The Museum's collections on energy and power illuminate the role of fire, steam, wind, water, electricity, and the atom in the nation's history. The artifacts include wood-burning stoves, water turbines, and windmills, as well as steam, gas, and diesel engines. Oil-exploration and coal-mining equipment form part of these collections, along with a computer that controlled a power plant and even bubble chambers—a tool of physicists to study protons, electrons, and other charged particles.

A special strength of the collections lies in objects related to the history of electrical power, including generators, batteries, cables, transformers, and early photovoltaic cells. A group of Thomas Edison's earliest light bulbs are a precious treasure. Hundreds of other objects represent the innumerable uses of electricity, from streetlights and railway signals to microwave ovens and satellite equipment.

The energy crises of the 1970s inspired inventors to try novel ideas for new light bulbs. One of the more unusual designs emerged from the drawing board of Manhattan Project veteran Leo Gross.
Description
The energy crises of the 1970s inspired inventors to try novel ideas for new light bulbs. One of the more unusual designs emerged from the drawing board of Manhattan Project veteran Leo Gross. Supported by Merrill Skeist at Spellman High Voltage Electronics Corporation, Gross designed a compact fluorescent lamp that he called a "magnetic arc spreader" (MAS).
The design took advantage of a fundamental aspect of electro-magnetism known since the early 1800s. When a current flows through a coil of wire, it produces a magnetic field. The arc discharge that travels between the electrodes of a fluorescent lamp can be affected by the presence of such a field. In the center of the MAS lamp seen here there is a copper coil. Current moving through the coil creates a magnetic field that spreads out the electrical arc within the lamp. The expanded arc energizes phosphor throughout the lamp's entire length.
The concept was tested at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, and General Electric became interested. In 1978 GE purchased a one-year license from Spellman in order to conduct further tests but determined that the necessary glasswork would make the lamp too expensive for commercial production. GE donated one of their test lamps to the Smithsonian in 1998—the only known surviving example of this experimental design.
Lamp characteristics: No base. Two stranded lead-wires extend about 2" from either end, and each end has one lead wire encased in a glass insulating tube. Two coiled tungsten electrodes are mounted in a hollow cylindrical envelope. The exhaust tip is near one set of leads, and the envelope has an internal phosphor coating. A coil of bare copper wire held together with black string is inserted into the center of the envelope. A current passing thru this coil spreads the arc between electrodes so that more of the phosphor is activated.
Date made
ca 1978
date made
ca. 1978
maker
General Electric Corporate Research & Development Laboratory
inventor
Spellman High Voltage Electronics Corp.
ID Number
1998.0050.15
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.15
As energy prices soared in the 1970s, lamp makers focused research efforts on raising the energy efficiency of electric lamps. A great deal of effort by many researchers went into designing small fluorescent lamps that might replace a regular incandescent lamp.
Description
As energy prices soared in the 1970s, lamp makers focused research efforts on raising the energy efficiency of electric lamps. A great deal of effort by many researchers went into designing small fluorescent lamps that might replace a regular incandescent lamp. These efforts led to modern compact fluorescent lamps that use bent or connected tubes, but many other designs were tried. This experimental "partition lamp" from 1978 shows one such design.
Soon after the 1939 introduction of linear fluorescent lamps, inventors began receiving patents for smaller lamps. But they found that the small designs suffered from low energy efficiency and a short life-span. Further research revealed that energy efficiency in fluorescent lamps depends in part on the distance the electric current travels between the two electrodes, called the arc path. A long arc path is more efficient than a short arc path. That's why fluorescent tubes in stores and factories are usually 8 feet (almost 3 meters) long.
Inventors in the 1970s tried many ways of putting a long arc path into a small lamp. In this case there are thin glass walls inside the lamp, dividing it into four chambers. Each chamber is connected in such a way that the electric current travels the length of the lamp four times when moving from one electrode to the other. So the arc path is actually four times longer than the lamp itself, raising the energy efficiency of the lamp. This unit was made by General Electric for experiments on the concept, though other makers were also working on partition lamps.
While the partition design works, it proved to be expensive to manufacture and most lamp makers decided to use thin tubes that could be easily bent and folded while being made.
Lamp characteristics: No base. Two stem assemblies each have tungsten electrodes in a CCC-6 configuration with emitter. Welded connectors, 3-piece leads with lower leads made of stranded wire. Bottom-tipped, T-shaped envelope with internal glass partition that separates the internal space into four connected chambers. Partition is made of two pieces of interlocked glass and is not sealed into the envelope. All glass is clear. No phosphors were used since the experimenter wanted to study the arc path.
Date made
ca 1978
date made
ca. 1978
maker
General Electric Corporate Research & Development Laboratory
ID Number
1998.0050.16
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.16
Ordinary lamps give good quality light and can be designed for all manner of special tasks. However, they waste a tremendous amount of energy in the form of heat.
Description
Ordinary lamps give good quality light and can be designed for all manner of special tasks. However, they waste a tremendous amount of energy in the form of heat. The steep rise in energy prices during the 1970s spurred a burst of invention aimed at developing lamps that gave more lumens per watt—the lighting equivalent of miles per gallon in cars.
Much of the invention took place in the laboratories of major lighting companies like General Electric and Sylvania. But inventors outside the corporate labs also offered ideas and new devices. One such inventor was Donald Hollister of California. A UCLA graduate with experience in plasma physics, Hollister patented a small fluorescent lamp called the "Litek." The lamp seen here is a hand-made prototype from 1979.
Most fluorescent lamps, large and small, operate by passing an electric current through a gas between two electrodes. The current energizes the gas that in turn radiates ultraviolet (UV) light. The UV is converted to visible light by a coating of phosphors inside the glass envelope of the lamp. Electrodes are responsible for much of the energy lost in a fluorescent lamp and are usually the part of the lamp that fails. Hollister's design was "electrodeless," and used high-frequency radio waves instead of electrodes to energize the gas.
The Litek lamp worked in the laboratory, and Hollister received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to refine the design. That proved more difficult than expected though. The electronic components available at the time were expensive and generated too much heat. Hollister tried to compensate with the massive heat-dissipation fins set below the bulb, but this added to the cost. Also, as an independent inventor Hollister could not just focus on research. He had to perform administrative tasks that researchers in corporate labs did not, and the project lagged. In the end the Litek did not reach the market, though in the 1990s the major companies all began selling electrodeless fluorescent lamps. These built on the work of several inventors, including Hollister's.
Lamp characteristics: Nickle-plated brass medium-screw base shell with brass retainer and plastic skirt. The base insulator is part of skirt. A metal fitting attaches to the skirt to dissipate heat. Tipped, G-shaped envelope with phosphor coating on inner wall and clear tip.
Date made
1979
maker
Hollister, Donald
ID Number
1992.0466.01
catalog number
1992.0466.01
accession number
1992.0466
Mock-up of experimental tungsten halogen Gemini lamp with two 60 volt miniature halogen capsules wired in series.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Mock-up of experimental tungsten halogen Gemini lamp with two 60 volt miniature halogen capsules wired in series.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1974-01-17
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.10
catalog number
1996.0147.10
accession number
1996.0147
Electric power lines have been connecting generating plants to customers since Thomas Edison put lines under the streets of New York City in 1880. Today aluminum lines like these carry electricity hundreds of miles.
Description (Brief)
Electric power lines have been connecting generating plants to customers since Thomas Edison put lines under the streets of New York City in 1880. Today aluminum lines like these carry electricity hundreds of miles. Hanging these high-voltage lines from towers allows the heat generated by their electrical resistance to dissipate into the air. The expanded area near the center is where the cable connects to an insulator.
Location
Currently not on view (cable part)
date made
ca 1970
ID Number
EM.330142
catalog number
330142
accession number
294058
Production miniature glow-lamp filled with either neon or argon. Used as indicator lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Production miniature glow-lamp filled with either neon or argon. Used as indicator lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.55
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.55
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.02
catalog number
1996.0082.02
accession number
1996.0082
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.03
catalog number
1996.0082.03
accession number
1996.0082
Type R4429 xenon flash lamp for airport. Unit produces short flashes of very bright light.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Type R4429 xenon flash lamp for airport. Unit produces short flashes of very bright light.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1977
maker
GTE Sylvania, Inc.
ID Number
2000.0224.03
catalog number
2000.0224.03
accession number
2000.0224
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1973-12
photographer
Regan, Ken
ID Number
2014.0112.411
catalog number
2014.0112.411
accession number
2014.0112
A short-arc mercury vapor lamp for projection use.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A short-arc mercury vapor lamp for projection use.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corp.
ID Number
1997.0389.48
accession number
1997.0389
catalog number
1997.0389.48
Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field header and bulb. A two-piece ferrite would be installed for experiment.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field header and bulb. A two-piece ferrite would be installed for experiment.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
maker
Anderson, John M.
ID Number
1998.0050.11
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.11
An experimental 10,000 watt stage and studio lamp with a hydrogen-bromine fill gas.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An experimental 10,000 watt stage and studio lamp with a hydrogen-bromine fill gas.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.06
catalog number
1996.0082.06
accession number
1996.0082
Cool-White fluorescent panel-lamp in original package. The envelope is two pieces welded together along the edge.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Cool-White fluorescent panel-lamp in original package. The envelope is two pieces welded together along the edge.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1973
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1998.0050.08
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.08
This lamp was designed as a retrofit for mogul based, 500 W incandescent fixtures. Discharge lamps such as mercury vapor lamps require a ballast to prevent self-destruction.
Description (Brief)
This lamp was designed as a retrofit for mogul based, 500 W incandescent fixtures. Discharge lamps such as mercury vapor lamps require a ballast to prevent self-destruction. The goal with this product was to improve energy efficiency in the luminaire without requiring installation of a separate ballast. Also, the light emitted by the incandescent filament in this lamp would provide a minimal amount of color correction for the blue-green mercury discharge. Characteristics: brass mogul-screw base with glass insulator. Side-tipped, quartz arc-tube with two main electrodes (tungsten coil-on-coil on mandrels), a coiled tungsten starter electrode (a single-arch filament adjacent to the lower main electrode), multi-piece leads (stranded wire to solid wire to flat plate to ribbon to molybdenum wafer to electrode), flat presses. Mercury condensed on lower electrode. A C-9 tungsten filament (with 5 two-piece supports mounted to a glass bead affixed to one support frame-member) acts as a ballast resistance and is in series with the arc-tube. Crimp connectors on leads, spot-welds on mount-structure. A thermostatic (bi-metal) switch is in series with the starting electrode. Glass-tube insulators on filament legs, and ceramic insulator on switch. Getter dispenser mounted near stem-press. Tipless, PS-style envelope. See Duro-Test form 992 (“High Intensity Discharge Lamps”), page 3; and form 971-8210GTO15M (“Fluomeric Lamps”). Given to donor by an engineer who rescued the lamp from a south Baltimore warehouse which was being demolished around 1981. Fluomeric is a registered trade-mark of Duro-Test (as per 1955). Richard Neubert of Duro-Test reported that Jewell was a subsidiary of Duro-Test until 1981, and marketed the lamp under the trade name "Super Lumen" until around 1975. The trade-names were then consolidated and Jewell sold “Fluomeric” until 1981.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1978
maker
Jewell Products Inc.
ID Number
2003.0030.03
accession number
2003.0030
catalog number
2003.0030.03
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.04
catalog number
1996.0082.04
accession number
1996.0082
In the wake of soaring energy prices in the 1970s, several manufacturers quickly introduced new lamp designs to meet a demand for efficient lighting devices.
Description
In the wake of soaring energy prices in the 1970s, several manufacturers quickly introduced new lamp designs to meet a demand for efficient lighting devices. General Electric mounted a circular fluorescent tube on an adapter that housed a starter and ballast, and that could screw into an ordinary fixture. Called the Circlite, this hybrid product was introduced to the public in 1976.
Since circular fluorescent tubes were already a mature product (originally developed in 1943), GE could take advantage of existing research data and production lines for the Circlite. Also, retailers and consumers were familiar with circular lamps, which eased resistance to the introduction of the new unit. The modular design allowed users to replace the tube when it failed, without having to replace the more expensive ballast package. Ultimately, GE and other manufacturers produced several versions of the lamp and refined the product. A light-weight electronic ballast replaced the heavier, less-efficient magnetic ballast used in this 1978 model, for example. As of today Circlites remain in production.
Lamp characteristics: A modular fluorescent lamp with three components: ballast, mounting frame, and lamp. Ballast: aluminum medium-screw base with brass contact and a glass insulator. A plastic skirt houses a magnetic ballast and a receptacle for a circular fluorescent lamp frame. Mounting frame: a three-arm plastic frame (made in two halves) with a sliding switch to release the ballast. The ballast mounts at center of mounting frame. Lamp: circular fluorescent tube with soft white colored phosphor.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca. 1978
Date made
ca 1978
manufacturer
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.25
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.25
Set of three miniature lamps for photoflash application.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Set of three miniature lamps for photoflash application.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.45
catalog number
1996.0147.45
accession number
1996.0147
Experimental lamp made by co-inventor Edward Zubler.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental lamp made by co-inventor Edward Zubler.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.07
catalog number
1996.0082.07
accession number
1996.0082
Welch-Allyn miniature lamps used for medical instruments.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Welch-Allyn miniature lamps used for medical instruments.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Welch
Welch Allyn, Inc.
ID Number
1996.0147.36
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.36
An experimental high-pressure sodium lamp having an unusual A-shape envelope with diffuser-coating.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An experimental high-pressure sodium lamp having an unusual A-shape envelope with diffuser-coating.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.13
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.13
A experimental high-pressure sodium lamp. Polycrystalline-alumina arc tube with niobium cap seals.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A experimental high-pressure sodium lamp. Polycrystalline-alumina arc tube with niobium cap seals.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.12
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.12
The James R. Barker was built in 1976 by the American Shipbuilding Co. at Lorain, OH for the Interlake Steamship Co. It was named after the head of the Moore-McCormack Steamship Company, which owned Interlake.
Description
The James R. Barker was built in 1976 by the American Shipbuilding Co. at Lorain, OH for the Interlake Steamship Co. It was named after the head of the Moore-McCormack Steamship Company, which owned Interlake. Costing over $43 million, Barker was the third 1000-footer to sail the Great Lakes, and the first built entirely on the Lakes. These big bulk coal and ore carriers were constructed to fit the largest locks connecting the Great Lakes.
Barker's two big 8,000-hp engines turn two 17-1/2-foot propellers, pushing the vessel at a speed of 15.75 knots (18 mph). The ship can transport 59,000 tons of iron ore pellets or 52,000 tons of coal. The self-unloading rig has a 250-foot-long boom that can unload 10,000 tons of ore or 6,000 net tons of coal per hour. By contrast, Interlake’s first bulk carrier, the 1874 wooden-hulled steamer V.H. Ketchum, could carry only 1,700 tons of ore and took nearly twelve days to unload using manual wheelbarrows.
The Barker was still in service in 2009.
Date made
1978
year the James R. Barker was built
1976
built James R. Barker
American Shipbuilding Co.
bought the James R. Barker
Interlake Steamship Co.
maker
Boucher-Lewis Precision Models, Inc.
ID Number
TR.336153
catalog number
336153
accession number
1978.0374
Reportedly the first ellipsoidal reflector lamp. See U.S. patent #4,041,344 issued to Frank LaGuisa.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Reportedly the first ellipsoidal reflector lamp. See U.S. patent #4,041,344 issued to Frank LaGuisa.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1976
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1985.0410.01
accession number
1985.0410
catalog number
1985.0410.01

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