Luminous performance of indoor environments using different lightscoop dimensions

Abstract

Lightscoops can contribute to the lighting performance of environments in humid tropical climates, with psychological and physiological benefits and increased productivity. The aim of this research is to investigate the luminous performance of indoor environments by varying the dimensions of lightscoops in Vitória - ES. The methodology includes simulations using the Troplux 8 software, dynamic skies, openings facing north and south, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., every day of the year. The simulated environment has lightscoops in the proportion of 4/3, height and length, of 5m² of glazed area defining three models, M1, M2 and M3. The lightscoops have the following dimensions: 2.0m x 1.5m x 2.5m; 3.0m x 2.25m x 2.5m and 4.0m x 3.0m x 2.5m, corresponding to height, length and width, respectively for M1, M2 and M3. The metrics were the IULN (Useful Illuminance of Natural Light) and ALN (Autonomy of Natural Light) ranges. Model M1, for both orientations, showed the best performance, increasing the percentage of the sufficient lighting interval by around 20% compared to the worst performing model, as well as showing 30% better performance in relation to ALN.