Green lighting

Project Duration : 2006 – 2009, funded by Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE)
Project leader: Prof. J.-L. Scartezzini
PhD Student: Friedrich Linhart (PhD thesis, 2010)

Objectives

A. High Performance Integrated Lighting Systems

  • design and set-up of an integrated day- and electric lighting system for office buildings, achieving an effective specific power of 3 W/m2, on an 1:1 scale test facility (LESO solar experimental building);
  • optimization of the overall system performance by the way of high efficacy light sources (novel discharge lamps and/or fluorescent tubes), high efficiency fixtures (non-imaging optics, high reflectance mirrored surfaces) and advanced daylight responsive lighting control strategies;
  • experimental performance assessment of the integrated system (energy consumption, visual comfort) and comparison with a conventional electric lighting system (recessed lighting fixture) in a similar office room.

B. Future Lighting Technologies

  • design of an efficient lighting system by the way of the integration of white LED sources (LumiLED) within a high efficiency fixture based on non-imaging optics and highly reflective materials (Regent Micro DownLight);
  • optimization of lighting and visual comfort conditions by the way of the integration of planar light sources for ambient lighting (e.g. OLED for instance) and white LED sources for task lighting (LumiLED) in an office room;
  • comparison with a conventional electric lighting system (recessed lighting fixture) in a similar office room.

Project environment

This research project benefitted from the experience and knowledge acquired by the EPFL Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory (LESO-PB) in the field of integration of day- and electric lighting systems (design and set-up of advanced daylighting systems, bio-mimetic control of electric lighting systems), as well as from collaborations with industrial partners from the building and lighting industry.

Selected publications