GE Linear Fluorescent Lamps

SECTION 2: Hazards identification

Mercury Mercury is present in very small amounts in all fluorescent lamps. The overall fleet average for all GE fluorescent lamps has been reduced by more than 90% since 1990. The amount of mercury present in any given lamp will vary depending on both the size of the lamp and the design life of the lamp. Smaller, shorter life lamps generally have lower mercury content. The most common fluorescent lamp types sold today contain less than 5 mg of mercury. 5 mg of mercury is extremely small, equivalent in size to the period at the end of this sentence. 2017 Fluorescent Lamps-PSDS 1 USA Section 3 – Lamp Composition and Detailed Ingredient Information General Lamp Composition Glass & Metal The glass tube used in a standard fluorescent lamp is manufactured from soda-lime glass and is essentially similar but not identical to that used throughout the glass industry for bottles and other common consumer items. The end-caps on the lamp are generally aluminum while the wires in the lamps (called filaments or cathodes) are made of tungsten. None of these materials would present a potential hazard in the event of breakage of the lamp, aside from the obvious ones due to broken glass. Some fluorescent lamps (CovRguard products) use an external coating of polycarbonate to provide a shatter-resistant coating. Glass composes between 93 and 97% of the lamp material depending on the lamp type. Metals compose between 1-5% of the lamp material depending on lamp type. Phosphor The fluorescent product line uses two different phosphor systems. One phosphor system (halophosphate) uses calcium chloro-fluoro-phosphate, with small amounts (less than 1-2% by weight of the phosphor) of antimony and manganese, both of which are tightly bound in the phosphor matrix. The second phosphor system (SP/SPX) uses a mixture of rare earth elements such as lanthanum, and yttrium as either an oxide or as a phosphate, along with a barium/aluminum oxide. The phosphor components may vary slightly depending on the color type of the lamp (Cool White, SP41, SPX35, etc.). Also, in some lamps designed for reduced power consumption, a thin coating of tin oxide is placed on the inside of the glass prior to coating the glass with the phosphor. Phosphor composes between 1-2% of the lamp material depending on lamp type. (The remaining approximate 1% of lamp material is basing cement.)