RLOD#17 (2020.05.23) 2012 Philips CDM860/V/O/4K/EA/BT37

The 860 W CDM lamp shown here is the most powerful ceramic metal halide lamp ever released on the market. It was introduced by Philips in June 2011 at LighFair as a retrofit solution to 1 kW quartz metal halide lamps. Its neon-argon filled burner, the base of Philips’s AllStart technology, ensures a reliable ignition on both standard probe- and pulse-start ballasts of North America, which have a high open-circuit voltage, while a lower discharge power factor results in a significant energy saving (14 % in the present case). Because of the superior flux maintenance of their ceramic burners, the CDM AllStart can replace higher-wattage quartz metal halide lamps in their sockets even though the latter have a higher initial flux output. Moreover, the improved fill chemistry in the ceramic lamp improves the quality of the emitted light significantly. A broader light emission spectrum results in a color rendering index of 92 Ra8, which is 27 points higher than that of standard sodium-scandium quartz lamps. The CDM860 shown here has some other interesting features, such as an elliptical burner optimized for a vertical operation and contained within a reinforced blast shield (i.e., the inner glass shrouds plus wire coil) to enable a use in open luminaires. The lamp is also built with a small BT37 jacket, which makes its compatible with compact lighting systems, and has an EX39 end cap compatible with pulse-start MH lamp sockets. Philips eventually delisted that particular 860 W CDM in early 2018 as a result of a strongly decreasing number of metal halide lamp sockets in use due to the advent of more efficient and durable LED systems.