Experimental study of Tubular Skylight and comparison with Artificial Lighting of standard ratings

Abstract: Proper lighting system, an important aspect of comfort conditions in a shelter (residence/work-place), includes use of artificial light sources (e.g. lamps) and natural illumination of interiors from daylight. Lighting design of buildings hardly receives due importance. Day lighting (through windows) is often main source of light during daytime. Artificial lighting, mostly by electric lights, forms significant part of worldwide energy consumption. Lighting design applied to a built environment, “Architectural Lighting Design”, is a science and an art. Comprehensive Lighting Design considers amount of functional light provided, energy consumed and aesthetic impact of lighting system. Tubular skylight, a simple device bringing sunlight to a building’s interiors at places, not receiving daylight, shows good potential of use for energy conservation and ergonomics. This paper presents results of experiments on performance of locally-fabricated Tubular Skylights of three different diameters, and comparison of illumination obtained with that obtained by bulbs of standard ratings.