Philips 12-Watt EnduraLED Light Bulb
LEDs are light-emitting diodes. Many experts look to LEDs as the future of lighting. Unlike compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), metal halide, and induction lamps, LEDs do not contain mercury, which is a toxic metal and disposal concern. LEDs are solid-state devices, utilizing semi-conductor technology.
Replacing the 60-watt incandescent light bulb is significant because there are so many of them. According to Philips, more than 425 million of these bulbs are sold each year in the U.S., representing approximately 50% of the domestic incandescent light bulb market. Replacing all of these with LEDs, like the Philips EnduraLED, would save more than 32 terawatt-hours of electricity per year, which is enough to power the lights of more than 16 million U.S. households and save 5.3 million metric tons of carbon emissions.
The EnduraLED produces 806 lumens of light using 12 watts of electricity, for an efficacy of 67 lumens per watt. This is about the same or slightly higher than the efficacy of most CFLs, while the expected life is longer and the light at least as good, if not slightly better, with a color rendering index (CRI) of 85. Also, unlike standard CFLs, the EnduraLED is fully dimmable.
The EnduraLED is not yet on the market. It was introduced at the Lightfair Conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday, May 12th, and the company plans to begin selling the product in the late fall of 2010. The suggested retail price has not yet been set, but Silvie Casanova, the senior manager for lighting communications at Philips Lighting North America, told me she expects it to be in the $60 range. This is a lot of money for a light bulb, but it's a lot less than the Cree LRP-38 (list price $199 and typical selling price around $140), which I wrote about back in February. Compared with the 60-watt incandescent light bulb, the EnduraLED should save about $120 over its life, assuming today's average electricity prices.
The Philips EnduraLED is based on technology used in the company's September, 2009 submission to the U.S. Department of Energy L Prize--a competition to spur the development of a more efficient light bulb. There are two categories for the L-Prize: a replacement for the 60-watt incandescent light bulb and a replacement for a PAR-38 halogen lamp. For a 60-watt bulb replacement, the L-Prize requires entries to produce at least 900 lumens using less than 10 watts--for an efficacy of at least 90 lumens per watt. Other requirements include a CRI of more than 90, a color temperature between 2700 and 3000K (considered a warm-white light, similar to that produced by a 60-watt incandescent bulb), and a projected life of more than 25,000 hours.
Philips had the first--and so far the only--submission for the 60-watt light bulb replacement, which carries a $10 million reward. According to Casanova, DOE is expected to announce L-Prize winners in 2011, after conducting extensive testing of submitted products.
While the just-introduced 12-watt EnduraLED does not meet the energy performance requirements of the L-Prize, it uses the same technology and basic lamp design.
We are witnessing a period of rapid advances in LED lighting technology. I fully expect to see LED light bulbs that meet the L-prize requirements fully on the market at a retail price in the $20-25 range (about that of early CFLs) within the next three to five years.
For more information:Philips Lighting North America
Burlington, Massachusetts
888-385-5742, 617-423-9999
www.lighting.philips.com/us_enI invite you to share comments on this blog. How low would the price of an LED light bulb have to drop for you to buy or specify it?
Alex Wilson is the executive editor of Environmental Building News and founder of BuildingGreen, LLC. To keep up with his latest articles and musings, you can sign up for his Twitter feeds.
Photos: Philips Lighting North America. The first photo shows the EnduraLED turned off; in the second it is switched on. The last photo shows Philips CEO Randy Provoost holding the EnduraLED and a 60-watt incandescent light bulb.