Tritium vs SuperLuminova Two Very Different Lumes

Imagine you are lost in a pitch dark labyrinth desperately seeking an exit. Your only source of comfort is the glowing hands and numbers on the dial of your wrist watch indicating the passage of time. Imagine your horror as the glow  begins to fade, and you are plunged into complete darkness and growing panic.  Your watch is probably coated in Super-Luminova and needs exposure to an external light source to glow again. In this labyrinth ,you unfortunately happened upon, has no source of external light.
Now imagine if your watch continues to glow strong and steady indicating the time and allowing you to keep your wits about you.  You can  plan a strategic way out. Your H3 Tactical Watch  watch contains Tritium filled tubes and is guaranteed to stay illuminated for the next 12.5 years without exposure to additional light.

So what makes Tritium and SuperLuminova so different?
Although the ultimate result similar ie they illuminate the dial indices to display time in the dark, the process by which they achieve the final effect is completely different.

H3 Tactical Watch - Tritium Tubes

Discovered in 1934 by Ernest Rutherford, ML Oliphant and Paul Harteck, Tritium is the 3rd of Hydrogen's naturally occurring isotopes (variation of an atom of an element) which contains one proton and two neutrons in its nucleas (H3).  It is radioactive and decays into helium-3 through  β− decay with half-life of 12.32 years. Tritium alone does not glow in itself, but must react with phosphor.  The phosphor then releases photons and glows.  On dials of watches minute amounts of tritium are placed in tiny phosphor coated tubes.  The tubes will continue glowing as the Tritium decays and strikes the phosphor; however Tritium only has a half-life of 12.32 years which means when it reaches its half-life, it will cease to glow.   

H3 Tactical Watches available at ZULUTIMEZONE.COM  provide a 10 year warranty for a constant intense glow even though the watch may glow for up to 25 years (double its half life).  H3 tactical watches are known for their advanced technique in the use of tritium to maximize the luminescence capabilities. H3 Tactical Watches glow 100 times brighter than other luminescence - and eradicate any potential contact between the  tritium gas and wearer.  H3 Tactical Watches place Tritium Gas (produced in Switzerland by MB-Microtec) in hermetically sealed glass tubes coated with phosphorescent paint.  These glass tubes are resistant to water, oil and other corrosive material.

Bell & Ross - Superluminova coating

What is SuperLuminova? Superluminova is a brand name for a type of Luminescence. Luminescence occurs when the electrons within a molecule or crystal are excited by an external light source, either ultraviolet light ("black light"), a biochemical reaction (glow-stick) or radioactivity (Tritium).

Superluminova, comprised of strontium aluminate, requires stimulation from external violet or ultraviolet light which absorbs the light in the form of energy and releases it slowly in the form of light.  The actual science behind this process  involves study of quantum mechanics whereby the slower time scales are related to "forbidden energy" state transition in quantum mechanics. Simply put, energy absorbed by a substance is slowly released in the form of light. The most common phosphorescent pigments used today are zinc sulphide and strontium aluminate. Strontium aluminate -  marketed by the brand name Super-Luminova is non-radioactive and non-toxic photo luminescence. This technology was developed after the zinc sulphide substance. Being that strontium aluminate is ten times brighter than zinc sulphide, the latter substance was zoned out and currently is something of a novelty.
   

 If one exposes a watch dial ,whose indices are coated in Super-Luminova and another whose indices contain phosphor coated tubes filled with Tritium gas,  to an external  light source (unnecessary for the Tritium) and then walk into a darkened room, the SuperLuminova dial will shine brightly and the Tritium dial will be quite visible but slightly less brilliant.  After a couple hours though, the Tritium dial will still be visible - glowing with  the same intensity but the Superlumonova dial will be completely dark.  Super Luminova is acceptable for those who have a constant available light source however for those subjected to long periods of darkness without reliable light sources require a Tritium dial.

Is Tritium harmful to ones health? Tritium is a low energy beta emitter and thus its beta particles cannot penetrate the skin, but like many substances in the environment, it cannot be ingested or inhaled.  Tritium, being an Isotope of Hydrogen (HTO) has a short biological half-life (7-14 days) preventing long term bioaccumulation of HTO from the environment.  When tritium is used  for luminescence ,such as in H3 tactical Watches, it is hermetically sealed in glass tube in minute quantities.  The tubes are specifically designed to resist corrosion to many substances, thus making it  impossible for the Tritium Gas to escape.

UNDARK Dial - radium

Tritium must not be confused with the highly radioactive Radium (half life of 1601), which was painted on dials around World War I. Discovered in 1898 by Marie Currie, Radium was initially thought of as a  miraculous cure of common ailments. The danger of Radium became well publicized in a law suit between big company and the "Radium Girls". Click here to learn about the devastating effects exposure to radium had on the lives of these young girls.Radium is highly reactive when exposed to air forming radioactive Radon gas. Although Radium was an efficient lume, its health hazards soon became apparent terminating the use of Radium on Watch dials.

Although there are other Lumes in use today, Tritium and Super-Luminova are by far the most widely used and efficient.