How To Run A Carbon Arc Lamp

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Cerb

Cerb

Elite Member
Aug 26, 2000
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I got to play with one from a projector when I was a kid. it was pretty cool.
 
J

jagec

Lifer
Apr 30, 2004
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Did he say 1000A?

Are those cables BIG enough?

And who has a dual axle van?
 
Red Squirrel

Red Squirrel

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May 24, 2003
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www.anyf.ca
Wow 1000 amps? That's insane! I was hoping to see better how it looks like lit up though, preferably in a dark scenery.

Did not figure you could get a good arc with only 70 volts. DC does tend to arc more easily though.

Going to have to try this in small scale some time. Just need to split open a pencil, make a bridge rectifier, and go from there. :p
 
Pheran

Pheran

Diamond Member
Apr 26, 2001
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When I saw the title of this thread, I knew who the poster was before looking. :)
 
Rubycon

Rubycon

Madame President
Aug 10, 2005
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Red Squirrel said:
Wow 1000 amps? That's insane! I was hoping to see better how it looks like lit up though, preferably in a dark scenery.

Did not figure you could get a good arc with only 70 volts. DC does tend to arc more easily though.

Going to have to try this in small scale some time. Just need to split open a pencil, make a bridge rectifier, and go from there. :p
Click to expand...

You can sustain an arc with DC at much lower voltage. All you need is strong current.

At 73VDC it's 73kW. The arc is probably getting a fraction of that, the ballast is not very efficient.

A good source of carbons is dry cell batteries. If you're careful you can extract them intact. Much better than using pencil lead.

Wear eye protection and have a fire extinguisher nearby. The arc is very hot and will destroy anything it comes in contact with!
 
IronWing

IronWing

No Lifer
Jul 20, 2001
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When my dad was a teen he worked at a movie theater that used a carbon arc projector. He wasn't the projectionist but got to play with it a bit. The big thing was to not set the film on fire.

I'm still trying to come up with a way to turn a graphite furnace into the world's fastest hotdog cooker.
 
P

PsiStar

Golden Member
Dec 21, 2005
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Rubycon said:
You can sustain an arc with DC at much lower voltage. All you need is strong current.

At 73VDC it's 73kW. The arc is probably getting a fraction of that, the ballast is not very efficient.
Click to expand...
It is all about plasma & sustaining current. The strike setups the plasma (the 4th form of matter) in air which is a very low resistance conductor ... the current sustains. The arc per se is very hot & emits light but I think the carbon rods emit most of the light and are consumed which he indirectly indicates.

I wonder what the RF spectrum that is emitted also?
 
Rubycon

Rubycon

Madame President
Aug 10, 2005
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PsiStar said:
It is all about plasma & sustaining current. The strike setups the plasma (the 4th form of matter) in air which is a very low resistance conductor ... the current sustains. The arc per se is very hot & emits light but I think the carbon rods emit most of the light and are consumed which he indirectly indicates.

I wonder what the RF spectrum that is emitted also?
Click to expand...


There are quite a few studies and papers on the physics of the impingement area involving carbon arcs.

The emission is broad and flat. Quite unlike how most men want their women. o_O
 
P

PsiStar

Golden Member
Dec 21, 2005
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Rubycon said:
There are quite a few studies and papers on the physics of the impingement area involving carbon arcs.

The emission is broad and flat. Quite unlike how most men want their women. o_O
Click to expand...
Hmmm, I am a warming globes follower
 
N

nanette1985

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 2005
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IronWing said:
When my dad was a teen he worked at a movie theater that used a carbon arc projector. He wasn't the projectionist but got to play with it a bit. The big thing was to not set the film on fire.
Click to expand...

That's probably a while ago. Current film is cellulose acetate which melts. Old nitrate film is the stuff that is amazingly dangerous. Especially around a carbon arc lamphouse. Glad your dad survived!
 
Squisher

Squisher

Lifer
Aug 17, 2000
21,204
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I worked for a bank 35 years ago. They had a warehouse which also had a printing press operation in it. I worked in that warehouse one summer and the guy that ran the printing press used to make some sort of printing source by exposing it with a carbon arc for like a minute. I only saw him do it once, but it was neat.
 
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