June 2009 Featured Story
No lightweight
Energy-stingy LEDs pack a powerful punch
Consumers might just be getting used to compact fluorescent lamps, but the lighting industry is hard at work perfecting the next greatest thing — lighting composed of light-emitting diodes (LEDs).
Don’t worry about having to throw out your CFLs any time soon, however. There are still a lot of kinks to work out before an entire home can be illuminated cost effectively with LEDs. But within a decade, or perhaps sooner, LEDs will be the predominant lighting product.
They are 50 to 60 percent more energy efficient than incandescent lighting and 25 to 30 percent more energy efficient than CFLs. The most efficient already operate 50,000 to 100,000 hours or 10 to 12 years longer than CFL lighting, according to the industry. The solid-state diodes are already in use for landscaping, flashlights, holiday lights and traffic signals, to name a few applications.
Experts at the Cooperative Research Network, a national co-op organization testing LEDs, say that electricity savings from computer-chip-driven LEDs will be one of the most important factors in reaching government-mandated energy-efficiency standards by 2020. LEDs could account for up to 30 percent of the savings.
In 2003, Austin (Texas) Energy replaced incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs in all city traffic signals. The city reports it has reduced energy use by 7.25 million kilowatt-hours and saved the city $1.4 million. Houston is doing the same and estimates the new bulbs will eventually save taxpayers $10,000 a day. Fast-food chains and other businesses that stay open 18 to 24 hours a day are also reaping some savings already. However, the high cost of LEDs for home lighting that is used for only a few hours a day would be hard to justify as of yet.
In late December, CRN hosted a “webinar” for cooperative leaders interested in monitoring research on LEDs. Cooperatives are looking first to use LEDs to replace outdoor mercury vapor, metal halide or low-pressure sodium lighting. Those who fired up their computers and dialed in to the briefing learned that LEDs are still in the experimental phase but are rapidly improving. Martha J. Carney of Outsourced Innovations told those participating in the seminar that LEDs have many advantages, come in a variety of fixtures and are hard to damage. The U.S. Department of Energy expects LEDs to parallel CFLs in performance within five years.
Written By: eceditor
Date Posted: 5/29/2009
Number of Views: 324
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