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LED Batteries
How is it that LED batteries last so much longer than conventional
batteries? The truth is that the durability of LEDs has little to nothing
to do with the batteries involved, although high-quality nickel cadmium
batteries can be very helpful. The main reason why LEDs last longer than
conventional lights or fluorescent bulbs is that LEDs emit light not as a
result of a voltage difference but as a result of a current differential.
With an ordinary lightbulb, light gets released when photons jump from a
filament at a higher voltage to a filament at a lower voltage. Thus, an
ordinary lightbulb's battery must be able to power this voltage
difference. The electronics that go on in LEDs are significantly
different. To create a current differential requires substantially less
energy.
One of the most intuitive ways to keep current consistent within your LED
is to employ resistors, either in series or in parallel. That being said,
if you don't organize the circuitry properly, the resistors could eat up a
good percentage of your power. Ideally, you want to set up your LED
circuits such that no resistors are necessary in order to optimize your
use of power.
If you own a piece of equipment that uses an LED display--for instance, if
one of your emergency exit signs contains an LED--it's still helpful to
check the batteries every month or so. Devices like emergency exit signs
usually come equipped with test buttons which allow you to gauge the
vitality of the batteries inside. When properly maintained, LED batteries
can yield a tremendous amount of work..
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