Daylighting

Sources of light
◦ The ultimate source is sun ofcourse
◦ Considering a point in the building natural
light may reach in the following ways:
 Diffused or skylight through window or opening
 Externally reflected light ( by the ground or other
buildings through the same windows
 Internally reflected light from walls, ceiling or other
surfaces
 Direct sunlight through a window to a given point
So three components will contribute to
the Illumination inside a building at a
point:
Illumination Indoors = SC + ERC+IRC
SC – Sky Component
ERC – Externally Reflected Light
IRC – Internally reflected light
Magnitude of these variables will depend on the
following:
SC – The area of sky visible from the point considered
and its average latitude angle, therefore: window size
and position, thickness of window frames, quality of
glass and its cleanness, any external obstructions
ERC – The area of external surfaces visible from the
point and the reflectance of these surfaces
IRC – the size of room, ratio of wall etc. surfaces in
relation to window area and the reflectance of these
indoor surfaces
Daylight Factor
In a given building, the ratio of the
illumination to the simultaneous out door
illumination can be taken as a constant.
This constant ratio expressed as a
percentage is the Daylight Factor
DF = Ei / Eo X 100 ( % )
By statistical evaluation of long term
illumination records an outdoor
illumination level can be established for a
given location
The reaction can be reversed for finding
out the indoor illumination
Ei = DF X Eo / 100
Daylighting in Tropics
In warm climates, overlighting would
mean overheating and overheating would
cause much greater discomfort than under-
lighting
Task of Dyalighting in Tropical Climate
◦ To provide adequate daylight even if the
windows are protected by louvres or grilles for
thermal reasons
◦ To exclude from the visual field excessively
bright light surfaces which would cause glare
In hot – dry climates
Direct sunlight should be excluded for thermal reasons and also for avoiding
glare
Windows in this climate are small, not much sky would be visible from any
point indoors, thus with low luminance blue skies, the sky component would
be insufficient
On the other hand, luminance of the sky near the horizon is greater and it
may be a source of glare if not screened.
Both the ground and external surface of other buildings is light coloured : in
strong sunshine this would also cause glare
Therefore externally reflected light can only be used providing that great
care is taken to avoid glare
Internally reflected light would be the most convenient form of daylighting.
 One suitable arrangement is high level window which would admit
reflected light to the ceiling. If the ceiling is white, this method would
ensure adequate and well diffused interior lighting.
If a sunlit view is unavoidable, the strong
luminance can be reduced by :
Painting the adjacent wall a light colour
Painting the inside of window frames
white
The reveals in the wall to be light
coloured
Vertical strip windows would be best in
this climate
In Warm Humid Climates

In this climate buildings are light weight

with large windows for cross ventilation
View of the sky should be screened by
shading devices or plants
The sky luminance is much less near the
horizon than at higher altitude, a view of
the sky uto 15deg angle from the horizon
may be permissible
The criteria should be:
Permit view of sky and ground near the
horizon only within 15 deg
Exclude view of bright ground and sunlit
blade or louvre surfaces
Daylight is to be reflected from ground
and blades upto the ceiling, which itself
should be light coloured