Technological Comparison

SSL (Solid State Lighting) is intended to be a cost-effective yet high quality replacement for incandescent and fluorescent lamps. To better understand the technical merits of SSL, it is important to understand the technology behind the lamps it intends to replace.

• Incandescent lamps (light bulbs) create light by running electricity through a thin filament, thereby heating the filament to a very high temperature and producing visible light. The incandescing process, however, is considered highly inefficient, as over 98% of its energy is emitted as invisible infrared light (or heat). Incandescent lamps, however, are relatively inexpensive to produce. The typical lifespan of an incandescent lamp is around 1,000 hours.

• Fluorescent lamps (light bulbs) work by passing electricity through mercury vapor, which in turn produces ultraviolet light. The ultraviolet light is then absorbed by a phosphorous coating inside the lamp, causing it to glow, or fluoresce. While the heat generated by fluorescent lamps is much less than its incandescent counterpart, efficiencies are still lost in generating the ultraviolet light and converting this light into visible light. In addition, mercury is detrimental to health, and should the lamp break, exposure to the substance can be hazardous. Fluorescent lamps are typically five to six times the cost of incandescent lamps, but have life spans around 10,000 hours.

• Solid State Lighting achieves its purpose by grouping smaller LEDs in an orderly fashion, thereby creating a unified beam. The SSL can be comprised of multiple white LEDs, or from ones that are color-mixed—where LEDs of different colors are mixed to produce white light. The inherent advantages of SSL are the same as those of an LED. Advantages include:
  • High durability - no filament or tube to break
  • Long life span - LEDs last approximately 50,000 hours
  • Low power consumption - reduces overall electricity bill
  • Flexible application – small size of LEDs can lead to unique lighting devices
  • Low heat generation – very little parasitic energy loss

Benefits

SSL technologies are uniquely positioned to address the following;

• reduce CO2 emissions, thereby positively affecting the greenhouse effect
• decrease by the global amount of electricity used for lighting
• provide higher quality lighting
• decrease the total global consumption of electricity
• reduce projected 2025 global carbon emissions by about 300 Mtons/year
• create new industries and jobs