NorCalSavant

As you know, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 effectively outlawed incandescent bulbs as they existed at the time. Conventional wisdom from public commentators essentially called it the end of incandescent bulbs to make room for more energy-efficient lighting technology like compact fluorescent lamps (CFL’s) and light emitting diodes (LED’s). CFL’s and LED’s, while highly energy-efficient in comparison with the incandescent bulbs have their own set of problems including the color or the quality of light, management and disposal of hazardous ingredient mercury, cost, performance, and a directional spread of light from the source.

However, according to this report in the New York Times, incandescent bulbs with improved energy efficiency are making a comeback. History has it that right before its death, an old technology makes a burst of improvement to stay relevant although only for a short while. So, is this one last hurrah for the incandescent bulb technology before its imminent death or is this new technology going to give us the best of both worlds — high energy efficiency for a better environment and the favorite quality of light for comfort and familiarity with no hazardous disposal problems?

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/spacepleb/2060630239/

Lighting and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

It is estimated that there are 4 billion incandescent bulbs lighting up the United States. According to Department Of Energy lighting accounts for about 10% of the residential electricity bill in the U.S. US homes and businesses consume about 300 billion kWh of electricity annually for lighting. It takes about hundred large power plants (with 500 MW rated capacity) to produce that much electricity per year.

There has been increasing concern about the environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions associated with power production from burning fossil fuels. Congress passed the 2007 Act in an attempt to reduce power consumption associated with light bulbs by requiring them to be more energy-efficient. It is projected that the new efficiency standards may reduce carbon emissions by approximately 750 million metric tons and save more than $40 billion on electricity costs by the year 2030.

President Obama said recently that

The first step we’re taking sets new efficiency standards on fluorescent and incandescent lighting. Now I know light bulbs may not seem sexy, but this simple action holds enormous promise because 7 percent of all the energy consumed in America is used to light our homes and our businesses. Between 2012 and 2042, these new standards will save consumers up to $4 billion a year, conserve enough electricity to power every home in America for 10 months, reduce emissions equal to the amount produced by 166 million cars each year, and eliminate the need for as many as 14 coal-fired power plants.

The Act does not prescribe or proscribe any lighting technology. It merely sets energy efficiency standards for common household bulbs. Tier 1 standards effective from 2012 to 2014 require light bulbs to be 25% to 30% more efficient than the prevailing technology. Tier 2 standards to be defined by DOE later may require light bulbs produced in 2020 to be 60% more efficient than today’s technology. The table below shows the current light output range for 40 W to 100 W bulbs, and the required lower wattage bulbs to produce the same light output range under Tier 1 requirements.

Summary of Performance Standards for Certain Light Bulbs in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

The good news is that incandescent bulb manufacturers are making efforts to produce more efficient incandescent bulbs to meet new efficiency requirements.

Phillips has already come out with the Energy Saver line of incandescent bulbs which are 30% more efficient than older technology. They last three times as long, but are much more expensive at five dollars a piece. Other manufacturers including General Electric, Osram Sylvania, Auer Lighting of Germany, and Toshiba of Japan are also working on bringing out more efficient incandescent bulbs to meet Tier 1 and Tier 2 requirements mandated under the Act.

One of the main efforts at improving the efficiency of incandescent bulbs revolves around applying special reflective coatings to gas-filled capsules that surround the bulb’s filament. The reflective coatings act as heat mirrors bouncing the heat back onto the filament to be converted into light again, thus improving the efficiency. Other researchers are working on modifying the filament directly to improve the energy conversion efficiency. There are no cost estimates available for the finished products right now.

Cost Savings

Let us do a rough cost comparison between a basic 100 W incandescent bulb and the Phillips Energy Saver 100 W bulb. The basic bulb costs $0.60 and lasts for 750 hours. The equivalent 70 W Phillips Energy Saver bulbs costs $5 and lasts for 3,000 hours. As such, it is basically going to take four basic bulbs to last as long as one Energy Saver bulb. Assuming the bulbs get used four hours a day, they get used or lit about 1,460 hours a year.

The basic bulb rated at 100 W would consume 146 kWh or $20.44 annually at $0.14 per kWh. The Energy Saver bulb rated at 70 W would consume 102.2 kWh or $14.31 annually at $0.14 per kWh. Over two years, the approximate life of the Energy Saver bulb, the total cost of the basic incandescent bulb would be $2.40 plus $40.88, or about $43.28. However, the total cost of the Energy Saver bulb would be $5 plus $28.62, or about $33.62. In effect, the Energy Saver bulb would be saving the buyer $9.66. That is roughly $4.83 per year per light point.

This website has a nice calculator where you can compare cost savings of different alternative bulbs based on hours of use per day and energy costs for the general location.

It is important to know that the Energy Saver bulbs, although more efficient than the current incandescent bulbs, do not come anywhere close to energy efficiency exhibited by existing CFL or LED. However, many CFL’s suffer from poor color or quality of light, and do not work with continuous dimmers. They also contain mercury, requiring careful disposal after use or in case of breakage while in use. LED’s are currently prohibitively expensive, have reliable performance problems, and produce directional light.

Conclusion

Will incandescent bulbs survive in the future? That will depend on what the 2020 energy efficiency requirements will be, whether cost effective technology will be found to further improve incandescent bulbs to meet those acquirements, and what the competition will do. In other words, will competing technologies like CFL and LED overcome their current limitations? The Act applies to bulbs from 40 W to 150 W and has exemptions for many specialized uses, making it unlikely that the current incandescent bulb technology will completely disappear.

IMHO it is more likely that there will be improved versions of many of the current technologies finding appropriate use in the broad range of home and public lighting needs.

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