Photometric assessment of solar light wall installed in a renovated high-rise apartment

Bringing natural daylight into interior spaces usually boosts indoor environmental quality and enhances the general appearance of a space via producing higher levels of illumination. Retrofitting a solar light wall in place of a solid wall appears to be quite useful in this regard as it tends to improve spatial light distribution and provide visual amenities for occupants. This paper presents the performance of a solar light wall introduced in a newly remodeled (renovated) high-rise apartment unit, which was originally built in the early 1980s. The light wall was illuminated by a daylighting system comprised of two parabolic concentrators placed on the south facing balcony. The average illuminance measured at a height of 75cm (work plane height) next to the solar wall remained between 300 and 400 lux during the hours of clear skies, whose average global horizontal illuminance was about 66,000 lux. It appears that the illumination furnished by the solar light wall was sufficient to recognize objects and discern details in its adjoining spaces (bedroom and bathroom).