LEDs are 90% more efficient than modern incandescent bulbs. Their rapid uptake has resulted in measurable cuts in energy demand and emissions. But their plummeting cost over the last ten years is also causing a “rebound effect” where people are using more and more LEDs, not least for outdoor lighting. Lucas Davis at the Haas School of Business believes we must embrace it, even if it’s counter to maximising energy savings. More and brighter … [Read more...]
The light bulb transition: when standards and subsidies promote sub-optimal technologies
This article is for those who want to understand the importance of timing: when is the right time to impose new standards and start/stop subsidies, to optimise the pathway to maximum efficiency? The light bulb transition of the last two decades is one of the successes of energy efficiency: from the old incandescents (15 lumens/watt) to halogen incandescents and CFLs, and then, finally, to LEDs (80 lumens/watt and prices falling 90% in ten years). … [Read more...]
Perovskites: the next generation of solar cells and lighting?
Enthusiasm about the discoveries being made about perovskite materials is spreading, explains Sam Stranks at the University of Cambridge. Perovskite solar cells hit 25.2% efficiency in 2019, not far off crystalline silicon cells at 26.7%. Research is suggesting that figure could rise higher still. Perovskite can be “tuned” to absorb particular frequencies of light, allowing different layers of perovskites to absorb different and therefore more … [Read more...]
