Analysis of natural lighting in a classroom in relation to visual comfort and the circadian cycle

Abstract

The openings of a building influence the daylighting of indoor environments, and as a consequence interfere in visual comfort, light and the circadian cycle of users. To analyze how the shading elements cause interference in these factors, two classroom models were simulated based on the FNDE norms, one without shading elements and the other with sunshades. From these two models, simulations were made for September 21st and June 21st, generating the four models to be analyzed in the ALFA plugin in terms of melanopic and photopic ration (M/P). As a result, it can be noted the differences caused by the shading elements, which were small in relation to the M/P ratio, however in the Equivalent Melanopic Lux (EML) they were around 1000 EML. It was also noticed that even with shading elements there was still a lot of visual discomfort caused mainly by glare.