Energy & Power

Gasoline Pump

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.

Date: 1970s

Experimental Lamp Filament

An unfinished tungsten wire filament for use in an incandescent lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An unfinished tungsten wire filament for use in an incandescent lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1972
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.91
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.91

Krypton-filled Incandescent Lamp

Krypton-filled "Super Bulb". Adding krypton gas to an incandescent lamp slightly boosts energy efficiency.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Krypton-filled "Super Bulb". Adding krypton gas to an incandescent lamp slightly boosts energy efficiency.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corp.
ID Number
1997.0389.21
accession number
1997.0389
catalog number
1997.0389.21

Experimental Compact Fluorescent Lamp

Experimental toroidal-shaped Solenoidal Electric Field lamp with a torr seal. Experimental electrodeless lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental toroidal-shaped Solenoidal Electric Field lamp with a torr seal. Experimental electrodeless lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1973
maker
Anderson, John M.
Roberts, Victor D.
ID Number
1998.0050.13
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.13

Tungsten Filament Lamp

"Longer Life - Less Light” incandescent lamp. The life rating, light output and efficiency of an lamp are all linked.GE "Longer Life / Less Light Lamp".
Description (Brief)
"Longer Life - Less Light” incandescent lamp. The life rating, light output and efficiency of an lamp are all linked.
GE "Longer Life / Less Light Lamp". According to a GE engineer, this was an attempt at truth in advertising to show that the public would not buy a long-life lamp if they knew that lumen output was reduced. The unappealing color and type-face of package may indicate a half-hearted effort to sell this product. The lamp was produced in response to the Brooks Committee Congressional hearings into lamp life (1964-66) - the details on the package mirror the argument GE made to the Committee. Characteristics: medium-screw base with glass insulator. CC-6 tungsten filament with center support, crimp connectors, dumet leads. Tipless A-shape envelope with internal frost [IF] coating.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1978
ca 1968
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
2003.0030.08
accession number
2003.0030
catalog number
2003.0030.08

Experimental Projection Lamp

Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1976
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.39A
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.39A

Tungsten Halogen Demonstration Assortment

Assortment of tungsten halogen lamps assembled by co-inventor Edward Zubler for use in lectures.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Assortment of tungsten halogen lamps assembled by co-inventor Edward Zubler for use in lectures.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.08
catalog number
1996.0082.08
accession number
1996.0082

Experimental Tungsten Halogen Lamp

Experimental tungsten halogen lamp with quartz wool designed to improve safety and provide light diffusion.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental tungsten halogen lamp with quartz wool designed to improve safety and provide light diffusion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1974
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.15
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.15

Experimental Tungsten Halogen Lamp

Experimental tungsten halogen lamp made with laser. Dimple near center support is exhaust port sealed by laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental tungsten halogen lamp made with laser. Dimple near center support is exhaust port sealed by laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1972
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.53
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.53

Mercury Thallium Lamp

Experimental mercury-thallium lamp. The quartz arc-tube has a white coating on both ends to protect against the heat.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental mercury-thallium lamp. The quartz arc-tube has a white coating on both ends to protect against the heat.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corporation
ID Number
2001.0084.09
accession number
2001.0084
catalog number
2001.0084.09

Quartz Spheres

Quartz spheres used to seal laser-drilled exhaust holes in tungsten halogen lamps.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Quartz spheres used to seal laser-drilled exhaust holes in tungsten halogen lamps.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972-09-02
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.29
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.29

Modular Fluorescent Lamp

GE fluorescent lamp designed to replace an incandescent lamp in a typical fixture.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
GE fluorescent lamp designed to replace an incandescent lamp in a typical fixture.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1978
ca 1980
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1992.0553.07
catalog number
1992.0553.07
accession number
1992.0553

Experimental Lamp Components

Set of experimental Gemini lamp parts including a filament, quartz envelopes, tungsten strips, and fiber washers.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Set of experimental Gemini lamp parts including a filament, quartz envelopes, tungsten strips, and fiber washers.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1972
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.98
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.98

Rigged Model, Sidewheel Cotton Packet J.M. White

The Mississippi River sidewheel steamboat J.M. White was built at Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1878 for the Greenville and New Orleans Packet Company. Measuring 321’ long and 91’ in beam across the paddlebox guards, the White only sat 10’-6” deep in the water when fully laden.
Description
The Mississippi River sidewheel steamboat J.M. White was built at Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1878 for the Greenville and New Orleans Packet Company. Measuring 321’ long and 91’ in beam across the paddlebox guards, the White only sat 10’-6” deep in the water when fully laden. The steamboat was designed for Mississippi River packet service between New Orleans, La., and Greenville, Miss.
The White was one of the largest, most expensive, luxurious, and most powerful river steamers ever built, with 2,800 horsepower and a capacity of 250 first-class passengers and 10,000 bales of cotton. Named after famous riverboat captain J. M. White (1823–1880), the “supreme triumph in cotton boat architecture” was a masterpiece of the gaudy, glamorous style known as “steamboat Gothic.” It had multiple bridal chambers; stained glass skylights and windows; rare wood veneers and gilded finishes; seven gilded “Egyptian-style” chandeliers; a sterling silver Tiffany water cooler in the 250’-long main cabin; monogrammed flatware and china; and a full concert grand piano.
The White spent most of its eight-year career in service on the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Vicksburg, Miss. Despite its economy of size, the White’s high initial $220,000 cost, a spotty economy, and the rapidly expanding railroad network made the steamboat unprofitable. It caught fire, blew up, and burned to the waterline at a Louisiana landing in December 1886, killing several aboard.
Date made
1974
built
1878
used date
late 19th century
ID Number
TR.334847
catalog number
334847
accession number
315419

Experimental Arc Lamp Bodies

Quartz lamp envelope used to make experimental mini-arc lamps of low wattage.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Quartz lamp envelope used to make experimental mini-arc lamps of low wattage.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.12
catalog number
1996.0147.12
accession number
1996.0147

Experimental electrodeless compact fluorescent lamp

As energy prices soared in the 1970s, General Electric, like other lamp makers, focused research efforts on raising the energy efficiency of electric lamps.
Description
As energy prices soared in the 1970s, General Electric, like other lamp makers, focused research efforts on raising the energy efficiency of electric lamps. One research program conducted by John Anderson at the GE Corporate Research and Development Laboratory in Schenectady, New York, sought to make a small fluorescent lamp that might replace a regular incandescent lamp.
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. Instead of electrodes, Anderson's design used a donut-shaped, ferrite (an iron oxide compound) to generate an electric field. The field energized the gas.
He called his design a Solenoidal Electric Field (SEF) lamp. The one seen here is an experimental unit made around 1978. While the lamp worked in the lab, the electronics to control it were expensive and generated heat that needed to be dissipated. As with other electrodeless lamps, radio-frequency interference was a concern. By the early 1980s GE decided to shelve the SEF lamp and market a miniature metal-halide lamp instead. In the late 1990s, however, GE took advantage of the lower cost and higher capability of electronic components and marketed an electrodeless lamp that built on prior work—including the SEF lamp.
Lamp characteristics: No base. A 1.5" (outside dia.) toroid-shaped ferrite is mounted vertically inside the lamp and held in place by a wire cradle. The conducting wire is insulated with woven nylon and wrapped ten turns around the top of the ferrite. A woven nylon mat is wrapped around the ferrite under the conductor, and another is placed between the conductor and the top-plate of the mount-cradle. A metal lead extends from the bottom of the ferrite into the exhaust-tip where it spirals around a metal cylinder. Tipless, AT-shaped envelope.
Date made
ca 1978
date made
ca. 1978
maker
General Electric Corporate Research & Development Laboratory
ID Number
1998.0050.07
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.07

Metal Halide Lamp

A metal halide lamp with an arc tube that has a reflective coating on both ends,Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A metal halide lamp with an arc tube that has a reflective coating on both ends,
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.05
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.05

Experimental Compact Fluorescent Lamp

Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field lamp with aluminum-covered ferrite.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field lamp with aluminum-covered ferrite.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1975
maker
Anderson, John M.
ID Number
1998.0050.03
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.03

Experimental Projection Lamp

Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1976
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.39B
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.39B

High Pressure Sodium Lamp

"Ceramalux" high pressure sodium lamp with poly-crystalline alumina arc tube.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
"Ceramalux" high pressure sodium lamp with poly-crystalline alumina arc tube.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corporation
ID Number
2001.0084.07
accession number
2001.0084
catalog number
2001.0084.07

Lamp Components

Gemini tungsten halogen lamp components and a mini-arc lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Gemini tungsten halogen lamp components and a mini-arc lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1972
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.31
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.31

Experimental Projection Lamp

Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Mini-arc projection lamp. Reflector has a dichroic film that reflects visible light but transmits infrared light.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1976
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.39D
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.39D

Experimental Fluorescent Lamp

Experimental fluorescent lamp with phosphor of varying thickness. Three-phase phosphor coating on inner-wall.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental fluorescent lamp with phosphor of varying thickness. Three-phase phosphor coating on inner-wall.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1974
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.44
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.44

Experimental Compact Fluorescent Lamp

Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field lamp header with split ferrite mounted inside.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental Solenoidal Electric Field lamp header with split ferrite mounted inside.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1975
maker
Anderson, John M.
ID Number
1998.0050.12
accession number
1998.0050
catalog number
1998.0050.12

High Pressure Sodium Lamp

"Unilux" model 360R high pressure sodium lamp. The coil around the arc tube helps the lamp to start.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
"Unilux" model 360R high pressure sodium lamp. The coil around the arc tube helps the lamp to start.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1973
maker
Unilux
ID Number
2000.0224.12
catalog number
2000.0224.12
accession number
2000.0224

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