Abstract
The darkening of soda-lime glass envelopes of low-pressure mercury discharge tubes has nothing to do with the formation of sodium amalgam on the inner surface of the tube. It is, however, connected with the diffusion of mercury ions into the glass of the tube. By applying a high negative voltage to part of the outer surface of a burning tube a sodium depleted region is created at the corresponding part of the inner surface. After removal of the high-voltage electrode and continued normal operation the rate of darkening of the sodium-depleted part of the tube is about 50 times larger than the rate observed for the normal parts of the same tube.
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References
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