High-pressure sodium (HPS) lamps

Quick Guide


Luminous efficacy 130lm/w

Lifespan Up to 24,000 hours

Features Extremely high luminous efficacy

Use them Exterior area lighting, security lighting, car parks and roadways.Non colour-critical industrial applications - such as large factories and storage areas.

Don't use them In most dimming applications, where you need light instantly, where you expect to switch on and off regularly and where you need to see colour.

Brief description

High pressure sodium lamps are a compact, powerful and efficient light source. They are typically used in street lighting and industrial applications where reproduction or colour is not important.

Advantages

  • High light output from a small point source
  • Lamp output not temperature dependant

Disadvantages

  • Very low colour temperature and poor colour rendering
  • Inability to give light instantly or hot-strike – so you can't flick them on/off repeatedly
  • Require special light fittings
  • Not a retrofit option for most applications except as upgrade for some mercury vapour lamps

Ongoing development

Minimal due to poor lighting quality.