Comparisons to Other Types of Lighting

Plasma lighting has substantial benefits compared to any other form of lighting out there. Sodium lamps in general provide very poor light quality and very little if any color rendition. Metal halide lamps generate a substantial amount of heat and UV rays and take some time to reach full brightness and restrike. Induction lamps contain mercury and cannot match the superior lumen maintenance of plasma lamps. Fluorescent lamps suffer from short life and poor color rendition while taking up a substantial amount of space to achieve similar brightness. LED lamps have a very unproven track record with poor lifespan when operating in warmer conditions as they generate a substantial amount of heat.


Comparison Chart

Comparison Plasma Low Pres Sodium High Pres Sodium Metal Halide
Photopic Lumens per Watt 80-100l/w 100-180l/w 80-150l/w 60-110l/w
Scotopic Lumens per Watt 200-250l/w 20-40l/w 30-60l/w 80-150l/w
Color Rendering Index 80-85ra 3-5ra 20-25ra 60-70ra
Bulb Lifespan 60-100K hours 10-12K hours 12-15K hours 8-10K hours
Time to Full Brightness 30-60 seconds 5-10 minutes 5-10 minutes 3-5 minutes
Mercury Content 0mg 5-40mg 10-50mg 20-200mg
Color Temperature 4000-7500K 1800K 2000K 3000-4000K
Fixture Temperature 50-80°C 100-150°C 300-400°C 300-400°C
Flicker No Yes Yes Yes


Comparison Plasma Induction Fluorescent LED
Photopic Lumens per Watt 80-100l/w 80-100l/w 80-100l/w 50-100l/w
Scotopic Lumens per Watt 200-250l/w 130-180/w 120-160l/w 80-160l/w
Color Rendering Index 80-85ra 80-85ra 60-70ra 60-70ra
Bulb Lifespan 60-100K hours 60K hours 5-10K hours 30-60K hours
Time to Full Brightness 30-60 seconds 30-60 seconds 30-60 seconds 1-5 seconds
Mercury Content 0mg 10-50mg 10-50mg 0mg
Color Temperature 4000-7500K 3000-6500K 3000-5000K 3000-6500K
Fixture Temperature 50-80°C 50-80°C 50-90°C 50-90°C
Flicker No No Yes No


Plasma lamps are able to provide the highest scotopic luminosity compared to any other lighting solutions out there. Compared to other light sources, this means less fixtures and less energy consumption to get the same visual acuity. Our 7500°K plasma lamps mimic the natural light provided by the sun and the sky during the daytime, which means colors will appear more natural as well. Sodium lamps have very high photopic lumens per watt on paper, but the lumens they provide are practically useless in real world applications due to the nature of their light. Everything looks orange and all the colors are washed out and appears unrealistic, resulting in slower reaction time.

A 1000w high pressure sodium lamp produces upwards to 140000 photopic lumens, compared to 58000 photopic lumens on our 700w plasma lamp, but when calculating visual acuity, that same 1000w high pressure sodium lamp only produces 56000 scotopic lumens compared to 145000 scotopic lumens with our 700w plasma lamp. One of our 700w plasma lamps will generate almost as much useful light as three 1000w high pressure sodium lamps, all the while producing far better quality light with high color rendering. Imagine the power savings between the 730 total system watts with one single plasma lamp and 3300 total system watts with three high pressure sodium lamps.


Visual Acuity Luminosity Ratios

Comparison of Scotopic and Photopic Ratios of Different Lighting Systems
7500°K Plasma Lamp 2.47
7500°K Fluorescent (875) 2.47
Sun + Sky 2.47
Sun 2.28
6500°K Fluorescent (865) 2.22
6500°K Fluorescent (765) 2.14
Metal Halide (Tl/Dy/Ho) 2.10
5000°K Fluorescent (850) 1.96
4100°K Fluorescent (841) 1.62
4100°K Fluorescent (741) 1.54
Quartz Halogen 1.50
Metal Halide (Na/Sc) 1.49
3500°K Fluorescent (835) 1.46
Incandescent 1.41
White High Pressure Sodium 1.14
3000°K Fluorescent (830) 1.00
Clear Mercury Vapor 0.80
High Pressure Sodium 0.40
Low Pressure Sodium 0.23

 

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