Non PCB Ballasts
An Electronic Ballast (sometimes called control gear) is a device intended to limit the amount of current in an electric circuit in lighting fixtures. An electronic lamp ballast uses solid state electronic circuitry to provide the proper starting and operating electrical condition to power one or more fluorescent lamps and more recently HID lamps. Electronic ballasts usually change the frequency of the power from the standard mains (e.g., 60 Hz in U.S.) frequency to 20,000 Hz or higher, substantially eliminating the stroboscopic effect of flicker (a product of the line frequency) associated with fluorescent lighting (see photosensitive epilepsy).
PCB Ballasts are ballasts that contain PCB’s (Polychlorinated Biphenyls), a class of organic compounds with 1 to 10 chlorine atoms attached to biphenyl, which is a molecule composed of two benzene rings. The chemical formula for PCBs is C12H10-xClx, where x = 1-10. PCB's were widely used for many applications, especially as dielectric fluids in transformers and capacitors and coolants. Due to PCB's toxicity and classification as persistent organic pollutants, PCB production was banned by the United States Congress in 1976 and by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in 2001. |
