Here comes the Sun - without glare!

Here comes the sun - without glare.

Solaveil glass technology, developed by Digital Surface Research in South Wales, has the potential to make redundant the use of air conditioning systems and window blinds in offices.

It’s a common thing for any office worker: sunlight glares on his screen so he closes the window blind and switches on an artificial light. But by doing this he immediately increases lighting energy costs. And, less apparent, he increases solar gain (an increase in temperature because of solar radiation), resulting in higher air conditioning costs.

In the UK alone, buildings account for 40-50% of national energy consumption. Carbon dioxide emissions from buildings are double those from cars. A total of 50% of all electricity is consumed in lighting commercial offices, while 30% of all electricity is consumed by air conditioning in buildings.

So how can we work with rather than against nature to light our buildings? One method could be to use smart, innovative technology, such as the surface treatment for glass developed by South Wales-based Digital Surface Research Ltd.

Sola Veil

SolaVeil is a digitally generated and manufactured enhanced substrate which can be applied to existing (as a retrofit) or new glass surfaces. It increases natural illumination, allowing for a reduction in the total amount of energy required to light and cool buildings (both day and night).

In full sunlight, a SolaVeil treated surface can transmit over 1200 lux of cool daylight into the building interior. In the winter it insulates, reducing heating bills.

The use of air conditioning systems can be reduced or even avoided, while glare is totally eliminated, making conventional window blinds redundant. To add to this, research has shown that more natural daylight leads to a greater sense of well-being, which results in greater productivity and health.

SolaVeil has recently been successfully installed in Oxford County Hall (with planned projected energy savings of 65% for lighting energy and 60% for cooling energy) and incorporated into the new Welsh Joint Education

Committee building in Cardiff, to enable the building to achieve a BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ‘Excellent’ rating.

‘Cooling’ light

SolaVeil technology manages daylight by harvesting and projecting it into a building so that spaces in the centre of large buildings can utilise more daylight and the need for artificial lighting energy can be significantly reduced.

SolaVeil cools the sunlight passing through it by rejecting, currently up to 81%, short wave infrared radiation (solar gain) and directing and transmitting the cool, harvested daylight deep into the interior environment.

For every square metre of SolaVeil applied, a three dimensional surface array is formed, which creates a series of micro light shelves. The area of these is significantly larger than the glass area which it covers. The light shelves reflect glare free, diffused light into the building, producing comfortable working conditions for the occupants.

The three dimensional array also produces a shading effect for building occupants who are close to the window. By this means, comfortable light and heat levels are achieved throughout the building. These structures, acting together with the substrate, reject short wave infrared and 99.9% of ultraviolet energy.

This innovative use of technology could have the potential to change office environments across the world.