WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF YOU LIGHT A BULB WITH A BROKEN SHELL?

Yesterday, I found out a broken bulb in my science kit which had a broken shell. 

I thought that the filament was also broken as it was very small and is very hard to see with the naked eyes. So, I had a few LEDs (Light Emitting Diode) as well. 

So I thought to dispose the bulb or throw it away. But then, for just one last time, I thought, that the terminals seemed fine to me, the filament, after looking at it closely also seemed fine to me, then why don't I try to glow it using a 9 Volt Battery and then check whether the bulb still has some life in it or not because that small thing was about 3 years old. 

So, I first connected the positive terminal of the bulb to the positive red wire of my 9V battery. And the moment I connected the negative terminal of my bulb (whose shell was broken) to the negative black wire of the battery, I was surprised to see that...(to be continued)…

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF YOU LIGHT A BULB WITH A BROKEN SHELL?

We all know a lot in Physics. Or at least the basics. When talking about electricity, we know some things like battery or a cell, bulb, wires, switches, testers, conductors, insulators, semi-conductors etc. You might have even experimented with these terms as well.

So, before I continue my story, I'll first tell you what usually happens when you light up a bulb whose shell is broken. So, in case when the shell of the bulb which is made of glass, accidently breaks, the nitrogen gas which is contained in the glass shell of the bulb suddenly mixes with oxygen in our atmosphere. And as soon as we turn on the current, the filament would give a really really bright light and heat (so if you also have a broken shell bulb, and you want to try it out, then just don't touch the bulb as incandescent bulbs emit a lot of heat and this heat gives us what we call light). And then, the filament usually burns off so much and gets oxidized, that the bulb simply fuses. So, it is a one time view, I think so.

Okay, so this was the actual thing which happens when you light a bulb whose shell is broken. Now I will tell you my story of what happens next when I lighted a bulb with a broken shell.

So, first when I connected all the correct terminals of the 9V Battery to my bulb, I thought nothing great would happen, but then, to my surprise, the filament glowed up! Not only the filament was working but the filament got so much heated up, that for a second I thought to remove the wires. But just as the bulb glowed, it left ARGON! Which is a very lethal gas to breathe in! 

Although it is a noble gas, and is stable, the gas made me cough a little, and the next moment I disconnected the terminals. The heat that produced was so large that it could have very easily burnt anyone's hand. Just think a 3 centimeter small bulb can even burn you or just can suffocate you as well. The Argon gas that was released from the filament was very white in color, darker white or more intensely white than other gases that you see. This was the first time I did, but I thought to do the same once more, so I did it again, and the results were same. But to my surprise my bulb's filament didn't burn up although it produced a lot of heat and light! If in a complete fine shell of a bulb, the inert gas or vacuum keeps the filament such that it doesn't gets destroyed, then when the filament gets oxidized when the bulb's shell is broken, it must have been destroyed, isn't it? Well, scientifically, the filament is made of Tungsten, an element in the periodic table, and tungsten reacts with oxygen to get oxidized, that's why the filament also get oxidized and burns up completely.

So, at the end of the day, my bulb's filament is safe, but is yours safe? If you have ever experienced this, then do tell me.

THANK YOU!

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