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LEDs without transformer?

Laila Briquet-Mosig on July 9, 2007 | 1436 Views | 6 Comments

Is it possible to have an LED lamp which can be plugged into a normal power source, without going through a transformer?

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6 Comments

Photo #1 by Jack Sheldon on July 9, 2007 at 9:08 p.m.

If by "normal power source" you mean mains power (120 V or 230 V) the answer is no. LEDs are low voltage devices. But then so many appliances are low-voltage appliances (PCs, most electronic appliances, even TV sets), that really I guess the question needs to be generalized.
And the answer to the follow-on question (why do we distribute electricity at such high voltages) is that the lower the voltage, the greater the losses in the distribution network (because to do distribute a given amount of power, you need more current at low voltages than at high, and the power loss in the distribution network goes up with the square of the current).

Photo #2 by Laila Briquet-Mosig on July 11, 2007 at 9:33 a.m.

Given the potential recycling problems with fluorescent bulbs, are there any LED bulbs which can be used to directly replace standard incandescent bulbs (without having to change lamps or add a transformer)?

Photo #3 by Jack Sheldon on July 11, 2007 at 10:54 a.m.

As I said in my previous post, LEDs are low voltage devices, so you will always need a transformer somewhere. You might starting finding LED bulbs that plug into regular lamp sockets, but they will in any case have a transformer built into them (because they are low-voltage devices (and what's more they need DC or direct current to operate correctly).
Building a whole pile of electronics to replace what used to be just a coiled piece of wire (old-fashioned incandescent lamps as invented by Edison), seems to me to create a massive ecological headache, as you're going to have to both manufacture and recycle all the associated electronics.
Remember fluorescents contain only minute quantities of mercury. So long they are disposed of correctly, they can be recycled correctly. What is medically a problem is cumulative exposure to mercury, not occasional exposure to minute quantities (if a lamp breaks for example).
Of course you could use battery-operated LEDs (some cars now use LEDs for their lamps), but we then would have to start a chapter on the ecology of batteries.

Photo #4 by Pippa Rojo on July 24, 2007 at 6:28 p.m.

I came across an interesting discussion on LED lighting, its advantages and, more particularly, its disadvantages when long-life promises fail and the light fades into non-existance.

Several people have described their experience in hacking night lights and shown the circuits and the replacement solutions they have found for ensuring that the light remains bright. 

http://www.electronicsweekly.com/blogs/engineering-design-problems/2007/03/the-notsobright-led-night-ligh-1.html

http://www.discovercircuits.com/Members/mod-led-nite-lite.htm

#5 by Paul Record on September 4, 2007 at 1:58 p.m.

LEDs are not as luminous efficient as compact fluorescents, yet but they don't suffer from low light output, when first turned on, as CFL do.  You don't need a transformer to run from the mains.  By combining a network of series and anti-parallel ( diodes in parallel with anode and cathode reversed) with a limiting resistor or active current souce they can directly connected to Mains 230 or 110V supplies.  Fifty thousand hours is quoted for MTBF, but that can fall if the current is not properly  controlled.

Photo #6 by Jose Charles on October 28, 2007 at 5:30 p.m.

Mr. Paul record's comment seems to be near to the answer and can be the solution to the question. When a 230 V supply indirectly means lighting needs of larger commercial, residential , and common area. If we can think of connecting number of LED in series will give higher output of enregy as well as will take care the problem of connecting to 230 /110 v supply.

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