Can we limit the energy consumption of the appliances using a ballast?

Question

An electrical ballast (sometimes called control gear) is a device intended to limit the amount of current in an electric circuit.Ballasts vary greatly in complexity. They can be as simple as a series resistor as commonly used with small neon lamps. For higher-power installations, too much energy would be wasted in a resistive ballast, so alternatives are used that depend upon the reactance of inductors, capacitors, or both. Finally, ballasts can be as complex as the computerized, remote-controlled electronic ballasts used with fluorescent lamps..

we need to make a new design of the ballast for it can be use in appliances..what shall we do to make it?is it possible?

Answer 1

No, this will not work.

Any ballast will reduce the voltage applied to an appliance. You cannot reduce the current without reducing the voltage.

An appliance is designed to work on 120 volts (240 for europe), and if you reduce the voltage it will not operate or not operate properly, and may cause damage.

Appliance manufacturers are under pressure from the various governments to reduce power consumption. If there were a simple solution like this, they would have done it long ago.

Answer 2

Electronic ballasts are necessary to limit the current of discharge lamps, such as neon and fluorescent, which have a negative resistance curve and would self-destruct otherwise.

They use "reactive" devices, such as inductors, to make them more efficient, as opposed to resistors. Electronic ballasts emulate an inductor to achieve the same effect.

You cannot improve on energy consumption by using a ballast. Its purpose is to match the impedance of the power source and the load, not to save energy. You can only make the ballasts more efficient, but the load itself must be the same.

In general, running a load, any load, at a lower current only makes it LESS efficient.

In addition, if you distort the current sine wave by using electronic devices, you become again LESS efficient. Harmonics generate additional losses.

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In a different context, when power systems overload, the frequency and the voltage may drop, somewhat, and this will help reduce overall load. Although it may  reduce demand, it is achieved at the expense of forcing a non ideal service and a less efficient form of operation to the users.

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