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.

One method that companies have long used to minimize production costs is to design products that use many of the same parts.
Description
One method that companies have long used to minimize production costs is to design products that use many of the same parts. In the early 1990s Duro-Test Lighting used this approach in a series of modular compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs).
Modular CFLs are designed so that specific parts can be replaced if they fail. This allows the reuse of expensive parts that still work. In this particular lamp, the fluorescent tube and the reflector enclosing it are made as one piece; the base-unit that houses the ballast and starter are another. In addition to allowing one to replace the tube assembly if it failed, one could swap different assemblies. The reflector lamp could be changed to a decorative lamp for example, without having to remove the base-unit.
Since the price of electronic components has dropped since this lamp was made, the economic reasoning behind this feature is less persuasive.
Lamp characteristics: Two-piece, modular compact fluorescent lamp including a base-unit and a tube assembly. The base-unit has a medium-screw base-shell with plastic insulator, and a plastic skirt that houses a ballast and a starter. A socket on top accepts a plug-in base. Tube assembly includes plastic plug-in base, a fluorescent tube with two electrodes, mercury, and a phosphor coating. A glass R-shaped envelope with silvered coating serves as a reflector and is glued to the tube assembly's base.
Date made
January 1991
1991-01
manufacturer
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.09
catalog number
1997.0062.09
accession number
1997.0062
A major hurdle that makers of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) have faced stems from the unusual shapes of the lamps, as compared to traditional incandescent lamps. Consumers have grown used to what light bulbs "are supposed" to look like.
Description
A major hurdle that makers of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) have faced stems from the unusual shapes of the lamps, as compared to traditional incandescent lamps. Consumers have grown used to what light bulbs "are supposed" to look like. Many have rejected CFLs for that reason despite the potential cost savings.
As lamp makers refined their understanding of the new product, designs were introduced to meet consumers' preferences for less-intrusive styles. Duro-Test developed a series of five modular CFLs around 1996, including this "Duro-Brite" unit that has a removable glass globe covering the twin-tube lamp. Another unit in the collection sports a removable glass reflector. The base-units contain the lamp's ballast and starter, and the tube assemblies themselves are interchangeable.
This unit is a modular CFL with three components: a tube assembly, an adapter, and a glass cover.
Lamp characteristics: Tube assembly is a twin-tube unit mounted on a plastic base. The adapter has a medium-screw base-shell with an insulator that is part of the plastic skirt housing the ballast. A G23 socket is on top for the tube assembly, and key-slots are molded around the edge to attach the cover. Cover is a G-shaped, clear-glass envelope with aluminum collar at bottom. There are stamped protrusions on the inside of the collar to mount the cover onto the adapter. Electrical rating is 13 watts.
date made
ca. 1996
Date made
ca 1996
manufacturer
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.11
catalog number
1997.0062.11
accession number
1997.0062
Base unit for "Spiralux" compact fluorescent lamp houses the electronics module needed to operate the lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Base unit for "Spiralux" compact fluorescent lamp houses the electronics module needed to operate the lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1996
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.12
catalog number
1997.0062.12
accession number
1997.0062
Production "Wattsaver-Argo" reflector lamp rated at 64 watts. Incandescent lamp designed to aid plant growth.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Production "Wattsaver-Argo" reflector lamp rated at 64 watts. Incandescent lamp designed to aid plant growth.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.08
catalog number
1997.0062.08
accession number
1997.0062
Production rough-service incandescent lamp. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Production rough-service incandescent lamp. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.02
catalog number
1997.0062.02
accession number
1997.0062
"Duro-Brite" compact fluorescent reflector lamp. Modular design allows parts to be replaced separately.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
"Duro-Brite" compact fluorescent reflector lamp. Modular design allows parts to be replaced separately.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1996
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.10
catalog number
1997.0062.10
accession number
1997.0062
Decorative lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Decorative lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.05
catalog number
1997.0062.05
accession number
1997.0062
This non-illuminating tube replaced one lamp in a two-lamp fluorescent fixture and cut the energy used almost in half.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This non-illuminating tube replaced one lamp in a two-lamp fluorescent fixture and cut the energy used almost in half.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1982
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.15
catalog number
1997.0062.15
accession number
1997.0062
During the 1970s, energy crises lamp makers scrambled to develop products that would be more energy efficient. One manufacturer, Duro-Test, began working with researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on an improved version of the ordinary incandescent lamp.
Description
During the 1970s, energy crises lamp makers scrambled to develop products that would be more energy efficient. One manufacturer, Duro-Test, began working with researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on an improved version of the ordinary incandescent lamp. The resulting product was called the "MI-T-Wattsaver" and was produced by the company from 1981 through 1989.
The basic concept seemed simple. The hotter a tungsten filament operates, the more efficient it becomes. Most of the energy emitted by the filament is in the form of invisible infrared rays that we feel as heat. If some of that heat could be directed back at the filament to raise its temperature, the lamp would give more light with no additional electricity needed. The researchers at Duro-Test and MIT called this concept a heat-mirror. They developed a special coating that would allow visible light to pass while reflecting infrared back to the filament, and put the coating on the inside of the glass bulb.
The concept worked but problems emerged. Tests showed that the coating aged with use, reducing the amount of heat reflected to the filament. The lamp was also difficult to make since the coating needed to be precisely applied and the filament needed to be mounted exactly in the center of the round bulb. As the price of compact fluorescent lamps fell in the late 1980s, Duro-Test decided to discontinue the MI-T-Wattsaver. The heat-mirror concept continues in use today in some tungsten-halogen lamps though.
The lamp seen here is a prototype sent to the U.S. Department of Energy for testing and evaluation in 1981.
Lamp characteristics: The piece has two sections-the lamp itself and a base adapter. The lamp has a brass bi-pin base (1/2" pin spacing with exhaust tube in between). Tungsten filament (broken) in CC-8 configuration with crimp connectors. A metal disc inside bottom of envelope may serve as a heat shield (the base pins pass through this disc). Tipless, G-24 glass envelope made in two halves. Both halves have an interior coating of infrared-reflecting film. The base adapter has a brass medium-screw shell, the insulator is part of a three-piece plastic skirt. Twist-lock receptacle on top connects to lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1980
date made
ca. 1980
collaborator
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1992.0553.09
catalog number
1992.0553.09
accession number
1992.0553
A krypton-filled lamp in original package. Krypton gas made incandescent lamps slightly more energy efficient.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A krypton-filled lamp in original package. Krypton gas made incandescent lamps slightly more energy efficient.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1966
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0387.21
accession number
1997.0387
catalog number
1997.0387.21
"Safe-T-Vapor" mercury vapor lamp had a fuse that extinguished the lamp within 15 minutes if the outer bulb cracked.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
"Safe-T-Vapor" mercury vapor lamp had a fuse that extinguished the lamp within 15 minutes if the outer bulb cracked.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1996
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.16
catalog number
1997.0062.16
accession number
1997.0062
MI-T-Wattsaver lamp co-developed by Duro-Test and M.I.T. used a filter to reflect infrared rays back to the filament.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
MI-T-Wattsaver lamp co-developed by Duro-Test and M.I.T. used a filter to reflect infrared rays back to the filament.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1986
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.06
catalog number
1997.0062.06
accession number
1997.0062
Duro-Test tungsten lamp developed with M.I.T. An infrared-reflecting coat raised the filament temperature.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Duro-Test tungsten lamp developed with M.I.T. An infrared-reflecting coat raised the filament temperature.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1981
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1992.0466.03
catalog number
1992.0466.03
accession number
1992.0466
The spiral in this “Power-Twist" fluorescent lamp improved energy efficiency.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
The spiral in this “Power-Twist" fluorescent lamp improved energy efficiency.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1996
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.14
catalog number
1997.0062.14
accession number
1997.0062
Base unit for "Spiralux" compact fluorescent lamp houses the electronics module needed to operate the lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Base unit for "Spiralux" compact fluorescent lamp houses the electronics module needed to operate the lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1996
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.13
catalog number
1997.0062.13
accession number
1997.0062
An unusual looking type of compact fluorescent lamp (CFLs) has spiral tubes, like this "Spiralux" lamp made by Duro-Test in 1996. Several manufacturers developed and now produce spiral CFLs.
Description
An unusual looking type of compact fluorescent lamp (CFLs) has spiral tubes, like this "Spiralux" lamp made by Duro-Test in 1996. Several manufacturers developed and now produce spiral CFLs. While the equipment to make these spiral tubes proved expensive to develop, the design addresses two problems.
CFL engineers faced a problem stemming from the fact 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. But most residential fixtures are designed to accept lamps the size of ordinary incandescent bulbs. So CFLs have been made with a variety of bent, folded, and connected tubes--all intended to put a long arc-path into a small lamp, the spiral design being one such.
The second problem centered on how light generated by the lamp interacted with shades and reflectors on fixtures. Most incandescent lamp fixtures are designed to use frosted or so-called soft white lamps. The coatings prevent the filament from being seen, making it look like the entire glass bulb is glowing. Shades and reflectors used in regular fixtures are designed using the science of optics to spread and direct the light in predictable patterns. CFLs, with their glowing tubes, are not shaped correctly for regular fixtures, causing light from the fixtures to be emitted in undesired patterns. Spiral CFLs closely mimic the shape of a glowing incandescent lamp so the optical design of the fixture operates as intended.
Lamp characteristics: Brass, medium-screw base with plastic skirt and glass base-insulator. Spiral-shaped discharge tube with internal phosphor coating, mercury, and two tungsten electrodes. The shape is intended to simulate an ordinary A-lamp.
date made
ca. 1996
Date made
ca 1996
manufacturer
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.07
catalog number
1997.0062.07
accession number
1997.0062
Decorative "Flamescent" lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Decorative "Flamescent" lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.01
catalog number
1997.0062.01
accession number
1997.0062
Two "Wattsaver" incandescent lamps in original package. Lamps filled with krypton gas to boost energy efficiency.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Two "Wattsaver" incandescent lamps in original package. Lamps filled with krypton gas to boost energy efficiency.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.04
catalog number
1997.0062.04
accession number
1997.0062
Decorative "Flamescent" lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Decorative "Flamescent" lamp in original package. Lamp is wrapped in fiberglass for strength and light diffusion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1994
maker
DURO-TEST Corporation
ID Number
1997.0062.03
catalog number
1997.0062.03
accession number
1997.0062

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