In 2000, energy-saving lamps quickly entered thousands of households in China with their advantages of low power consumption and long service life. By 2009, the penetration rate had reached 90%. Is the energy-saving lamp so widely used really the culprit of cancer lurking around people?
ultraviolet radiation is the main cause of cancer
On the premise of achieving the same lighting effect, the power consumption of energy-saving lamps is only 1 / 5 of that of ordinary incandescent lamps, but the service life is six times of that. It is precisely because of this advantage that energy-saving lamps are being vigorously popularized all over the world. However, the discussion on its security has never stopped.
In January this year, scientific life of the United States published an article pointing out that researchers at the State University of New York in the United States found through experiments that energy-saving lamps have stronger ultraviolet radiation than incandescent lamps. Researchers first detected the ultraviolet emission and phosphorescent layer of energy-saving lamps, and then compared the effects of energy-saving lamps and incandescent lamps on human skin cells. The results showed that the skin cells exposed to the ultraviolet radiation of energy-saving lamps were seriously damaged, while the skin cells exposed to incandescent lamps were not damaged. Researchers said that the ultraviolet radiation released by energy-saving lamps may damage human skin cells, make people premature aging, and even lead to fatal skin cancer.
Not only that, the Daily Telegraph of the UK reported that scientists from the alab laboratory in Berlin, Germany, recently found through research that energy-saving lamps will release a variety of carcinogenic chemicals when they work, including phenols, naphthalene, styrene and other toxins. Researchers believe that long-term use of energy-saving lamps or close contact will increase the risk of cancer. Experts from the German Federation of engineers said that the electronic smoke emitted by energy-saving lamps also poses a threat to health.
the radiation is limited, so don’t panic.
Experts at home and abroad have different opinions on whether energy-saving lamps cause cancer. Zhang Jie, associate professor of Physics Department of Jinan University, said that traditional incandescent lamps use tungsten filament to emit light. When current passes through the tungsten filament, heat is generated, and the filament will light up. However, the light-emitting principle of energy-saving lamps is different. After the energy-saving lamp is powered on, the mercury atoms in the lamp tube release ultraviolet rays invisible to human eyes. The ultraviolet rays hit the phosphor coating on the inner wall of the lamp body and turn into visible white light. Researchers at the State University of New York in the United States believe that once the phosphor layer breaks, ultraviolet rays will take the opportunity to “escape” outside the lamp, threatening people’s health, and spiral energy-saving lamps are more dangerous.
Experts from the National Electrical Manufacturers Association of the United States and the North American Lighting Engineering Association said that the ultraviolet content emitted by energy-saving lamps was very low and within the range that people could bear.
“Ultraviolet radiation can indeed cause damage to skin cells to a certain extent, but the premise is high-intensity, short-range and long-term irradiation.” Lin Yandan, an associate professor of the Department of light source and lighting engineering of Fudan University, told the life times that generally speaking, as long as it is a qualified energy-saving lamp, it will meet the standards of China’s “photobiosafety of lamps and lamp systems” and control the amount of ultraviolet radiation within a safe range. The light wave radiation will weaken with the increase of distance during transmission, so the distance between the human body and the energy-saving lamp is crucial. For lamps with covers, part of ultraviolet radiation is filtered out, so there is no need to panic too much. Lin Ruoci, an authoritative optical expert at the Institute of building physics of the Chinese Academy of Building Sciences, also said that the UV intensity released by energy-saving lamps is limited, and there is no problem in daily use.
how to choose the safest lamp?
From the analysis of experts, it is not difficult to see that the key to the safety of energy-saving lamps is the amount of radiation. Therefore, strict quality assurance is particularly important. In recent years, the pass rate of energy-saving lamp product quality supervision in China is generally low, and the overall pass rate of the country is only 39.3%, which can not help worrying. In this regard, many experts suggest that the current recommended national standards should be upgraded to mandatory standards and included in the CCC certification standards of lighting fixtures, so as to ensure the quality of energy-saving products.
It’s better not to buy inferior energy-saving lamps worth three or four yuan. “When consumers buy energy-saving lamps, they must choose products with CCC certification in regular stores.” Lin Yandan emphasized. The reporter learned from the investigation that the market price of high-quality energy-saving lamps of major brands is generally more than ten yuan, while low-quality energy-saving lamps are only sold for three or four yuan. Consumers should not be greedy for cheap prices to avoid buying inferior products.
There are skills in selecting high-quality energy-saving lamps. According to the staff of Jilin Provincial Administration for Industry and commerce, high-quality energy-saving lamps have a bright and clean appearance, fine workmanship, and no bubbles. The phosphor coating inside the lamp tube should be fine and smooth, without particles, uniform white, and no blackening; When shaking the energy-saving lamp up and down, there is no sound of debris inside; The connection between the lamp cap and the lamp body shall be firm, which can be repeatedly installed and unscrewed on a lamp holder for several times, and the lamp cap shall not be loose and fall off; The center welding point of the lamp head shall not be too high, and shall be uniform and bright.
Keep a distance of 30cm from the energy-saving lamp. A study published by the UK health protection agency said that when energy-saving lamps are kept at a distance of 2 cm from the human body, their ultraviolet intensity can reach the level of summer sunlight exposure, which may be harmful to health. Therefore, Lin Yandan suggested that when using energy-saving lamps in daily life, it is better to keep a distance of more than 30cm, or install glass lampshades to isolate ultraviolet radiation, and do not use them for more than 8 hours a day. Infants with incomplete development should reduce or not use energy-saving lamps; For lamps and lanterns that need to be used for a short distance and a long time, such as bedside lamps and table lamps, it is better not to use energy-saving lamps.
Avoid direct contact with damaged energy-saving lamps. If you accidentally break the energy-saving lamp, do not touch the debris directly with your hands. You can wear rubber gloves to pick it up, seal it with plastic bags and discard it. Keep the indoor ventilation for more than 15 minutes.
Establish a recycling mechanism as soon as possible. Lin Yandan introduced that Mercury in energy-saving lamps will cause great pollution to the environment. It is a toxic substance, and more than 2.5G of it can lead to death if inhaled at one time. However, there is no complete recycling method in China at present. It is suggested to establish a reasonable recycling mechanism as soon as possible to reduce its pollution to the environment.
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