A CFL without filaments

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A man from Kulathoor in the district has claimed to have developed a Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) that glows without the help of filaments. He told reporters here on Saturday that he is in the process of obtaining a patent for his groundbreaking design of an electronic choke that makes the concept of a non-filament CFL possible.According to Rajeev K R of Unnavila, Kulathoor, a standard CFL uses two filaments. When these burn out, the lamp is dead. His design avoids the filaments, and ensures that the lamp has twice the life of a standard one."An ordinary CFL burns for 6,000 hours. After that, the filaments burn out and you have to throw it away. But the electronic choke that I’ve designed does away with the idea of filaments. This ensures that the lamp’s burning life is doubled,’’ he said.According to him, his electronic choke functions in the range of 80 volts to 240 volts and generates more light than the standard CFL. It is also 15-per cent more energy efficient than the one’s you find in the market, he said. Rajeev also organised a demonstration using a modified CFL at the Press Club on Saturday to prove his claims.Rajeev, who has studied till his pre-degree, has spent the past three years on researching for his new choke. He says his design is cost-effective and, therefore, commercially viable. "The electronic choke I designed used components easily available in the market. In fact, they cost only Rs 40, but I had to make sure that the end product conformed to international standards,’’ he said. Rajeev has already applied for a patent for his product.