ORNL hybrid lighting
ORNL hybrid lighting technology gaining momentum around nation
With five hybrid solar lighting systems already in place and another 20 scheduled to be installed in the next couple of months, the forecast is looking sunny for a technology developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Preliminary data from field units, which collect sunlight and pipe it into buildings using bundles of small optical fibers, show potentially significant energy savings in lighting and maintenance costs. An added benefit is that, for most uses, natural light is vastly superior to artificial light.
"This is the ultimate 'green' technology," said Duncan Earl, a co-developer of the technology and chief technology officer of Oak Ridge startup company Sunlight Direct, which licensed the technology from ORNL last year. "In fact, we have received many inquiries and are working with several organizations that are aiming to build LEED- (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings." The U.S. Green Building Council established the LEED designation for buildings that comply with a national consensus standard for design and construction of "green" buildings. The hybrid solar lighting technology uses a rooftop-mounted 48-inch diameter collector and secondary mirror that track the sun throughout the day. The collector system focuses the sunlight into 127 optical fibers connected to hybrid light fixtures equipped with diffusion rods visually similar to fluorescent light bulbs. These rods spread light in all directions. One collector powers eight to 12 hybrid light fixtures, which can illuminate about 1,000 square feet. During times of little or no sunlight, a sensor controls the intensity of the artificial lamps to maintain a constant level of illumination.
With five hybrid solar lighting systems already in place and another 20 scheduled to be installed in the next couple of months, the forecast is looking sunny for a technology developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Preliminary data from field units, which collect sunlight and pipe it into buildings using bundles of small optical fibers, show potentially significant energy savings in lighting and maintenance costs. An added benefit is that, for most uses, natural light is vastly superior to artificial light.
"This is the ultimate 'green' technology," said Duncan Earl, a co-developer of the technology and chief technology officer of Oak Ridge startup company Sunlight Direct, which licensed the technology from ORNL last year. "In fact, we have received many inquiries and are working with several organizations that are aiming to build LEED- (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings." The U.S. Green Building Council established the LEED designation for buildings that comply with a national consensus standard for design and construction of "green" buildings. The hybrid solar lighting technology uses a rooftop-mounted 48-inch diameter collector and secondary mirror that track the sun throughout the day. The collector system focuses the sunlight into 127 optical fibers connected to hybrid light fixtures equipped with diffusion rods visually similar to fluorescent light bulbs. These rods spread light in all directions. One collector powers eight to 12 hybrid light fixtures, which can illuminate about 1,000 square feet. During times of little or no sunlight, a sensor controls the intensity of the artificial lamps to maintain a constant level of illumination.
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