The impact of using solar powered led bulbs as an alternative source of energy for street lighting in Ghana

Abstract

The existing street lights in the country uses high pressure sodium (HPS) lamps and mercury vapor lamps which is powered from the national grid. These types of street lights consume a lot of power and put a lot of pressure on the national grid. Considering the number of street lights in the country in terms of the amount of energy it draws from the national grid, it is important that another source of power is used to ease the burden on the national grid and also provide a reliable supply of street light in the country. The main objective of the research is to determine the impact of using solar powered light emitting diodes (LED) lamps in place of the existing grid connected high pressure sodium (HPS) lamps and mercury vapor lamps street lamps. The research looked at the existing conventional/traditional grid connected street light in terms of cost of initial installation, cost of maintenance, power consumption, brightness/luminous intensity, lifespan and other accessories compared to the off-grid/ stand alone solar powered street light. The findings show that solar powered LED street light has a higher energy savings capacity (40%) than the existing high pressure sodium (HPS) lamps and mercury vapor lamps and also provides reliable supply of light and alleviate some of the burden on the national grid. The conclusion of the research is that using solar powered LED street lighting system will lead to an increased initial installation cost but savings made due to reduced maintenance cost and longevity of the solar powered LED lamps is very significant and cost effective.