Safety of Light Emitting Diode (LED) Based Domestic Lighting in Rural Context

Abstract

As per 2011 census, 69% of Indians live in the rural settings, who are primarily dependent on subsistence agriculture. Rural house-holds use power for lighting, operating household appliances and agricultural works. Home-lighting is one of the major components of power consumption in less affluent rural households. Many rural houses use kerosene lamps, lanterns, candles and inverter-based electric lamps as a light source. Therefore, artificial lighting in a rural scenario is expected to have certain characteristics such as a) appropriate illumination; b) Low cost; c) Low power consumption; d) Long life; e) Low maintenance. Light-emitting Diode (LED) has been a revolution in such scenarios with its long life, low cost, less power consumption and lesser pollution. While nowadays, low-cost white (cool daylight) LED lights have overtaken the Indian lighting market and are projected to reach $2.2billion by 2021. However, some reports have raised concern regarding various health hazards (circadian rhythm disruption and harm to the human eyes) due to sharp blue-peak in LED lights. Since the scientific literature is still inconclusive about the photo-biological safety of blue-rich white LEDs, usage of LEDs needs more awareness. The aim of this study is to assess the fraction of radiation in the blue region of the entire spectrum of white LED lights and propose low-cost filters to reduce the blue-rich components of LED lighting.