Banning of incandescent lightbulbs - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Some governments around the world have passed measures to phase out incandescent light bulb
Incandescent light bulb
The incandescent light bulb, incandescent lamp or incandescent light globe makes light by heating a metal filament wire to a high temperature until it glows. The hot filament is protected from air by a glass bulb that is filled with inert gas or evacuated. In a halogen lamp, a chemical process...

s for general lighting. The aim is to encourage the use and technological development of more energy-efficient lighting alternatives, such as compact fluorescent lamp

Compact fluorescent lamp

A compact fluorescent lamp , also called compact fluorescent light, energy-saving light, and compact fluorescent tube, is a fluorescent lamp designed to replace an incandescent lamp; some types fit into light fixtures formerly used for incandescent lamps...

(CFLs) and LED lamp

LED lamp

An LED lamp is a solid-state lamp that uses light-emitting diodes as the source of light. The LEDs involved may be conventional semiconductor light-emitting diodes, organic LEDs , or polymer light-emitting diodes devices, although PLED technologies are not currently commercially available.Since...

s. Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

and Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

started to phase them out in 2005, and the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

started to phase them out in 2009. Likewise, other nations are planning scheduled phase-outs: Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

, and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

in 2012, and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

and Malaysia in 2014.

The phase-out has been criticized by some consumer groups and social welfare organizations for the extra costs imposed on the public by government dictat, as well as for the light quality of the incandescent lamps not matched by the alternative technologies. There are also environmental concerns over the potential for mercury

Mercury (element)

Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...

pollution from some alternatives to incandescent light bulbs, notably compact fluorescent lamp

Compact fluorescent lamp

People's Republic of China

China will ban imports and sales of certain incandescent light bulbs starting October 2012 to encourage the use of alternative lighting sources such as light-emitting diode (LED), with a 5-year plan of phasing-out incandescent light bulbs over 100 watts starting October 1, 2012, and gradually extend the ban to those over 15 watts on October 1, 2016.
Another source, however, has indicated that by October 1, 2016, all incandescent light bulbs will be banned.
According to this source, November 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012 will be a transitional period and as of October 1, 2012, imports and sales of ordinary incandescent bulbs of 100 watts or more will be prohibited. The first phase will be followed by a ban on 60-watt-and-higher incandescent lightbulbs starting in October 2014. By October 2016, all incandescent lightbulbs will be banned in China.
The final phase may be the adjusted according to the results of interim assessment from October 2015 to October 2016.

India

While not a complete ban, the plan is to replace 400 million incandescent light bulbs with CFLs by 2012. The energy savings and resultant carbon emissions savings is expected to be around 55 million tonnes per year

The states of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...

and Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

in India have banned the use of incandescent bulbs in government departments, public sector undertakings, various boards, cooperative institutions, local bodies, and institutions running on government aid.

Philippines

In February 2008, president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo called for a ban of incandescent light bulbs by 2010 in favor of more energy-efficient fluorescent

Fluorescent lamp

A fluorescent lamp or fluorescent tube is a gas-discharge lamp that uses electricity to excite mercury vapor. The excited mercury atoms produce short-wave ultraviolet light that then causes a phosphor to fluoresce, producing visible light. A fluorescent lamp converts electrical power into useful...

globes to help cut greenhouse gas emissions and household costs during her closing remarks at the Philippine Energy Summit. Once put in effect, the country will be the first in Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

to do so.

Malaysia

The Government will stop all production, import and sales of incandescent light bulbs by or before January 2014, as part of efforts to save power and to help cut greenhouse gas emissions.

European Union

The initial Europe wide ban only applies to general-purpose, non-directional incandescent bulbs, so does not affect any bulbs with reflective surfaces (e.g. spotlights and halogen down lighters) or special purpose bulbs including those used in ovens, fridges, traffic lights, infrared lamps etc. The sale of the most inefficient bulbs will be phased out. The first types to go are non-clear (frosted) bulbs, which would be off the market by September 2009. Also from September 2009 clear bulbs over 100W must be made of more efficient types. This limit will be moved down to lower wattages, and the efficiency levels raised by the end of 2012.
Also, the EU has given the target of 2016 to phase out halogen bulbs, and any bulb available for purchase after the 2016 date must have at least a 'B' energy rating.
The Finnish parliament discussed banning sales of incandescent light bulbs by the beginning of 2011.

Ireland

The Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

government was the first European Union

European Union

(EU) member state to announce a ban on the sale of incandescent light bulbs. It was later announced that all member states of the EU agreed to a progressive phase-out of incandescent light bulbs by 2012.

Switzerland

banned the sale of all light bulbs of the Energy Efficiency Class

European Union energy label

EU Directive 92/75/EC established an energy consumption labeling scheme. The directive was implemented by several other directives thus most white goods, light bulb packaging and cars must have an EU Energy Label clearly displayed when offered for sale or rent...

F and G, which affects a few types of incandescent light bulbs. Most normal light bulbs are of Energy Efficiency Class E, and the Swiss regulation has exceptions for various kinds of special-purpose and decorative bulbs.

United Kingdom

The UK government announced in 2007 that incandescent bulbs would be phased out by 2011. The UK followed the EU-wide ban on 60w incandescent bulbs that came into effect on 1 September 2011; 40w and lower ratings will be phased out in 2012

Canada

The provincial government of Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

stated in February 2007 that it would like to move towards preventing the sale of incandescent light bulbs in the province.

In April 2007, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

's Minister of Energy

Ministry of Energy (Ontario)

The Ministry of Energy’s responsibility is ensuring that Ontario’s electricity system functions with reliability and productivity, and promoting innovation in the energy sector. In April 2002, it was re-named the Ministry of Energy, with the newly created Ministry of Enterprise, Opportunity and...

Dwight Duncan

Dwight Duncan, MPP is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 1995, and is the Minister of Finance in the government of Dalton McGuinty...

announced the provincial government's intention to ban the sale of incandescent light bulbs by 2012.

Later in April, the federal government announced that it would ban the sale of inefficient incandescent light bulbs nation-wide by 2012 as part of a plan to cut down on emissions of greenhouse gases.

In January 2011, the province of British Columbia banned retailers from ordering 75- or 100-watt incandescent bulbs.

The nation's Energy Efficiency Regulations are published on the Natural Resources Canada website.

Cuba

Cuba exchanged all incandescent light bulbs for CFLs, and banned the sale and import of them in 2005.

Individual state efforts

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

will phase out the use of incandescent bulbs by 2018 as part of bill by California State Assembly

California State Assembly

The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...

member Jared Huffman

Jared Huffman

Jared Huffman is the assemblyman for California's 6th State Assembly district, which includes all of Marin and southern Sonoma counties...

(D-Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa, California

Santa Rosa is the county seat of Sonoma County, California, United States. The 2010 census reported a population of 167,815. Santa Rosa is the largest city in California's Wine Country and fifth largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, after San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, and Fremont and 26th...

) that was signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....

on October 12, 2007. The bill aims to establish a minimum standard of twenty-five lumens per watt by 2013 and sixty lumens per watt by 2018.

Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

legislation was proposed by state Representative Mary M. Mushinsky (D-Wallingford).

New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

Assemblyman Larry Chatzidakis

Larry Chatzidakis

Larry Chatzidakis is an American Republican Party politician, who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1997-2008, where he represented the 8th legislative district. Chatzidakis had been appointed in 1997 to fill the Assembly seat vacated by Martha W...

introduced a bill on February 8, 2007 that calls for the state to eliminate incandescent bulbs in government buildings over the next three years. Chatzidakis said, "The light bulb was invented a long time ago and a lot of things have changed since then. I obviously respect the memory of Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison

Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...

, but what we're looking at here is using less energy."

Federal legislation

In December 2007, many of these state efforts became moot when the federal government enacted the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 is an Act of Congress concerning the energy policy of the United States...

, which requires all general-purpose light bulbs that produce 310–2600 lumens

Lumen (unit)

The lumen is the SI derived unit of luminous flux, a measure of the total "amount" of visible light emitted by a source. Luminous flux differs from power in that luminous flux measurements reflect the varying sensitivity of the human eye to different wavelengths of light, while radiant flux...

of light be 30% more energy efficient (similar to current halogen lamp

Halogen lamp

A halogen lamp, also known as a tungsten halogen lamp, is an incandescent lamp with a tungsten filament contained within an inert gas and a small amount of a halogen such as iodine or bromine. The chemical halogen cycle redeposits evaporated tungsten back on to the filament, extending the life of...

s) than then-current incandescent bulbs by 2012 to 2014. The efficiency standards will start with 100-watt bulbs in January 2012 and end with 40-watt bulbs in January 2014.

Light bulbs outside of this range are exempt from the restrictions. Also exempt are several classes of specialty lights, including appliance lamps, rough service bulbs, 3-way

3-way lamp

A 3-way lamp is a lamp that uses a 3-way bulb to produces three levels of light in a low-medium-high configuration. A 3-way lamp requires a 3-way bulb and socket, and a 3-way 2-circuit switch...

, colored lamps, stage lighting, and plant lights.

By 2020, a second tier of restrictions would become effective, which requires all general-purpose bulbs to produce at least 45 lumens per watt (similar to current CFLs). Exemptions from the Act include reflector flood, 3-way, candelabra, colored, and other specialty bulbs.

In 2011, Rep. Joe Barton

Joe Barton

Joseph Linus "Joe" Barton is a Republican politician, representing in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1985, and a member of the Tea Party Caucus...

of Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

and 14 other Republicans

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

joined to introduce the Better Use of Light Bulbs Act or BULB Act (H.R. 91), which would have repealed Subtitle B of Title III of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Barton was opposed to regulation, while Rep. Michael Burgess

Michael Burgess

Michael John Clement Burgess OBE is the Coroner of the Queen's Household. He was educated at King's College London. He was appointed deputy coroner in 1991 and was appointed coroner in 2002...

pointed to jobs purportedly lost to China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

and voiced a fear of mercury problems resulting from CFL use. On July 12, 2011, H.R. 2417 failed to pass by the required two-thirds majority in the U.S. House

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

Australia

In February 2007, Australia

Australia

enacted a law that will, in effect, by legislating efficiency standards, disallow most sales of incandescent light bulbs by 2010. The Australian Federal Government announced minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for lighting products. The new minimum standard efficiency level is 15 lumens per watt (lm/W). From November 2008, no non-compliant lighting (including some incandescent globes) were imported into Australia

Australia

, and from November 2009, the retail sale of non-compliant lighting was banned.
According to the current proposal, all regular light bulbs and some other kinds of light bulbs sold from October 2009 have to meet the new minimum energy performance standards. Incandescent light bulbs that meet the new standards, for example high-efficiency halogen bulbs, continue to be available.

It is estimated that greenhouse gas

Greenhouse gas

A greenhouse gas is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone...

emissions will be cut by 800,000 tonnes (Australia's current emission total is 564.7 million tonnes), a saving of approximately 0.14%.

There have been some initiatives to encourage people to switch to compact fluorescent lamps ahead of the phase out.

New Zealand

In February 2007, then Climate Change Minister David Parker announced a similar proposal to the one in Australia, except that importation for personal use would have been allowed. However, this proposal was scrapped by the new government in December 2008.

Argentina

In Argentina

Argentina

, selling and importing incandescent light bulbs has been forbidden since 31 December 2010.

Venezuela

As part of its electricity conservation program, Venezuela

Venezuela

has a light bulb exchange program, which aims to replace millions of incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents.

Global

As part of global efforts to promote efficient lighting, United Nations Environment Programme with the support of the GEF Earth Fund, Philips Lighting and OSRAM GmbH has established the en.lighten initiative. The initiative seeks to accelerate global commercialization and market transformation of efficient lighting technologies by working at the global level and providing support to countries. In doing so it aims at promoting high performance efficient technologies, phasing out inefficient lighting technologies, and substituting traditional fuel-based lighting with modern, efficient alternatives, with consideration for environmentally sound technologies (including mercury-free).

Public opposition

The phase out has been referred to as "light bulb socialism". The consumer preference for light bulbs in the EU is for incandescent bulbs, with many complaining about what was described as the ugliness or the cold, flat, unnatural, dull light emanating from CFLs. Objection has also been raised to being forced to adopt CFLs.

Bulk purchasing

Bulk purchasing

Bulk purchasing is buying products in large quantities at a lower price per item, or unit price, than is available for smaller quantities. Wholesale is selling or related to selling goods in large quantities for resale to the consumer. Retailing is buying products in bulk at wholesale, and selling...

of incandescent bulbs was reported ahead of the EU lightbulb ban. Many retailers in Britain, Poland, Austria, Germany and Hungary have reported bulk purchasing

Bulk purchasing

, and in Germany, sales rose by up to 150% in 2009 in comparison to 2008. Two-thirds of Austrians surveyed stated they believe the phase-out to be "nonsensical", with 53.6% believing their health to be at risk of mercury poisoning. 72% of Americans believe the government has no right to dictate which light bulb they may use. The Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

President, Vaclav Klaus

Václav Klaus

Václav Klaus is the second President of the Czech Republic and a former Prime Minister .An economist, he is co-founder of the Civic Democratic Party, the Czech Republic's largest center-right political party. Klaus is a eurosceptic, but he reluctantly endorsed the Lisbon treaty as president of...

, urged people to stockpile enough incandescent bulbs to last their lifetime.

Museums and individuals have been stockpiling incandescent lightbulbs in Europe, owing to CFL's inferior colour representation. The European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation

ANEC

ANEC, the European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation , is an organisation promoting and defending consumer interests in the processes of standardization and certification and in legislation related to standardization and certification...

has called for a speedy reduction of the mercury

Mercury (element)

Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...

levels contained within CFLs from the current 5mg limit to 1 mg. The European Consumers' Organization, BEUC, said that phasing out incandescent bulbs will be detrimental for people suffering light-related health issues, and called for the continued availability of incandescent bulbs:

"The EU Regulation falls short of the needs of some consumers who need to use the old-style light bulbs for health-related reasons such as light sensitivity. We call on the European Commission to take immediate measures to ensure that people who rely on incandescent light bulbs will be able to buy these bulbs until suitable alternative lighting technologies are available. There are also concerns about the risks to health from the high mercury content of the new bulbs."

A campaign group called SPECTRUM was formed by the charities Lupus UK, Eclipse Support Group, ES-UK, XP Support Group and The Skin Care Campaign as an 'alliance for light sensitivity' to oppose 'UK and EU plans to phase out incandescent lightbulbs'. Their campaign has been picked up and amplified by the British Association of Dermatologists, calling for access to incandescent light bulbs for those who are medically sensitive to CFLs and other non-incandescent bulbs, and the charity Migraine Action, stating that its members still suffer adverse effects from CFLs despite protestations from the light bulb industry.

In the United States, one supporter of the incandescent light bulb is the lighting designer Howard Brandston, a fellow of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America

The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America is a non-profit learned society that was founded in New York City on January 10, 1906. The IES's stated mission is to improve the lighted environment by bringing together those with lighting knowledge and by translating that knowledge into...

and Honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers

Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers

The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers is a British professional engineering body based in London, England that represents building services engineers...

. He has attempted to raise awareness of what he believes are negative effects of the phase out through media outlets and industry forums, and he was invited as one of six experts to testify before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on March 11, 2011.

Environmental and health concerns

CFLs, like all fluorescent lamps, contain small amounts of mercury

Mercury (element)

Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...

as vapor inside the glass tubing, averaging 4.0 mg per bulb. A broken compact fluorescent lamp will release about 4% of its mercury content. Safe cleanup of broken compact fluorescent lamps is different from cleanup of conventional broken glass or incandescent bulbs. After a proper cleanup, any potential short term exposure offers no significant health risks to adults, including pregnant women, or to children. If all electricity was generated by a coal power plant (which produce about half the electricity the U.S. consumes) and fluorescent light bulbs were all recycled with no mercury being lost nearly 75% less mercury could be released in power plant emissions if incandescent bulbs were replaced by fluorescents. However, a concern is that broken bulbs will introduce the mercury directly into a populated indoor area.

No mercury is used in the manufacturing of LED lamp

LED lamp

s, a different technology replacement for incandescent lamps.

Cost

The cost of CFLs is higher than incandescent light bulbs. Typically this extra cost is repaid in the long-term, as CFLs use less energy and have longer operating lives than incandescent bulbs, although some CFL manufacturers have consistently over-estimated the actual usable lifetime of their lights. However there are some areas where the extra cost of a CFL may never be repaid, typically where bulbs are used relatively infrequently such as in little-used closets and attics.

Dimmers

Some CFLs may not be compatible with existing dimming circuits although more dimmable CFLs are expected to become available as the phase-outs progress. Mains voltage halogen bulbs provide a more efficient dimmable alternative to common incandescent bulbs and are readily available, however halogen bulbs are designed to be operated at a specific temperature and therefore are not entirely compatible with dimming.

Dimmable LED lamps are available from several vendors, although not all LED lamps are compatible with dimmers.

Movement of manufacturing jobs and emissions

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

closed their incandescent light bulb factory in Winchester, Virginia, while the CFL bulb market share is dominated by Chinese manufacturers. Ironically, the increase in demand for Chinese CFLs has driven an expansion in the number of facilities manufacturing the bulbs, which in turn has spurred an increase in the construction of coal-fired power plants in China, to supply power to the additional factories. Reduction in atmospheric mercury and greenhouse gases in some parts of the world are therefore being offset to some extent by increases in these emissions from the additional Chinese plants.

Alternatives to incandescent bulbs

None of the alternatives to the incandescent lamp produce light with the same spectral characteristics. An incandescent lamp approximates a black body

Black body

A black body is an idealized physical body that absorbs all incident electromagnetic radiation. Because of this perfect absorptivity at all wavelengths, a black body is also the best possible emitter of thermal radiation, which it radiates incandescently in a characteristic, continuous spectrum...

spectral distribution. All the proposed alternatives use phosphors to produce light and have significantly irregular spectral distributions, which can result in colour casts in photography and failures of colour matching when compared to incandescent produced light or daylight. This may not be a disadvantage for domestic lighting. Moreover, improved phosphor

Phosphor

A phosphor, most generally, is a substance that exhibits the phenomenon of luminescence. Somewhat confusingly, this includes both phosphorescent materials, which show a slow decay in brightness , and fluorescent materials, where the emission decay takes place over tens of nanoseconds...

formulations have improved the perceived color of the light emitted by CFLs, and some sources now rate the best "soft white" CFLs as subjectively similar in colour to standard incandescent lamps.

The first widely available replacements for incandescent light bulbs, compact fluorescent lamps, are now (as of 2010) joined by two alternative technologies - light-emitting diode

Light-emitting diode

A light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...

lamps (LED) and electron stimulated luminescence

Electron stimulated luminescence

Electron Stimulated Luminescence is light produced by accelerated electrons hitting a phosphor surface in a process known as cathodoluminescence....

(ESL) lamps. Both LED and ESL technologies are mercury-free, eliminating the need for special disposal or handling, and both have long lives when compared to incandescent bulbs.

LED lamp

LED lamp

s are used for both general and special-purpose lighting. Where colored light is needed, LEDs come in multiple colors, which are emitted with no need for filters, and also produce a more robust color than incandescent bulbs. This improves the energy efficiency over a white light source that generates all colors of light then discards some of the visible energy through a filter.

Compared to fluorescent bulbs, advantages for LED light bulbs are that they contain no mercury, that they turn on instantly, and that lifetime is unaffected by cycling on and off, so that they are well suited for light fixtures where bulbs are often turned on and off. LED light bulbs are also less apt to break.

Electron stimulated luminescence technology is about 70 percent more energy efficient than incandescent lamps, and are rated to last up to five times longer than incandescent lamps. ESL lamps produce light by stimulation of a phosphor, a technology used in cathode ray tubes, and produce light of a similar quality.

Heating and cooling

Depending on the climate, the full energy savings and environmental benefits of widespread phase-out and replacement with efficient lighting may vary. In warmer climates, efficient lighting would have an energy saving effect by reducing the amount of cooling required, while in cooler climates, increased heating energy demand may offset some of the lighting energy saved with efficient lighting.

External links

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