In the next decade, the expanding use of advanced fluorescent lamps, light emitting diodes (LEDs), and automated control technologies will all help reduce the energy used to power direct lighting by an estimated 1 trillion kWh, or a whopping 60%. That means that, even as the developed world expands its floor space by approximately 11.3 billion ft2 per year, the cost to illuminate it will actually decline from $174 billion today to $119 billion in 2020.
This week’s Graphic comes from the recent Lux Research report, “The future is so bright: Energy, carbon, and cost savings through better lighting (Client registration required),” and illustrates how energy savings break down by application.
Residential lighting clearly improves the most, but from the lowest base. Residences comprise nearly 80% of the world’s floorspace, and have far less efficient lighting systems that still rely heavily (i.e. 45%) on 16 lm/W incandescent bulbs. However, a steady infiltration of CFLs will produce up to 80% of the residential light in 2015 followed by adoption of LEDs, bringing average lamp efficacy up from 42 lm/W in 2010 to more than 100 lm/W in 2020; a 245% improvement. With smart lighting controls, Lux projects overall savings of 0.79 trillion kWh – a 43% reduction of total direct energy used by 2020.
Use of smart lighting controls in government building floorspace, and advanced lighting used to illuminate commercial and industrial space will have a combined effect. Together, they will shave 110 billion kWh off the direct energy expended these buildings in 2020. On top of that, the growing use of T5 fluorescent tubes, LEDs, and other advanced lighting will improve energy efficiency of 70%, signaling direct lighting energy savings of 0.26 trillion kWh in 2020.
The smallest gains will be in decorative and exterior illumination and task lighting which, by 2020, will see energy savings of 0.002 trillion kWh and 0.025 trillion kWh, respectively.
