Comparative life cycle assessment of LED lighting products

LED lighting products used in lighting applications and their subsequent environmental impact are growing rapidly. However, there are no in-depth updated studies that show how to assess and compare them for eco-design purposes. This research aims to add insights in this area to inform eco-design by assessing and comparing the environmental impact of a new LED eco-lighting product with an existing LED lighting product. A cradle to grave Life Cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted using ReCiPe Midpoint and Endpoint (H) life cycle impact assessment method with Simapro software. The system boundaries included all product life cycle stages, except the maintenance of the luminaires and the manufacturing of the packaging. A novel functional unit was defined for the assessment, which is more suitable for the LED lighting products. Six scenarios were considered, including three probable useful lives of the luminaires (1,000, 15,000 and 40,000 h) and two end of life options (domestic bin and recycling centre). The LCA results revealed that the new eco-lighting product has about 60% less environmental impact than the existing lighting product in all scenarios. The life cycle stages with the highest environmental impact are: 1) Use, 2) Manufacturing, 3) End of Life and 4) Transport. Based on the results obtained, recommendations for eco-design of LED lighting products were proposed, and challenges of application of LCA for the eco-design were discussed