Search results for "light"
showing 10 items of 3575 documents
Direct sunlight facility for testing and research in HCPV
2014
A facility for testing different components for HCPV application has been developed in the framework of "Fotovoltaico ad Alta Efficienza" (FAE) project funded by the Sicilian Regional Authority (PO FESR Sicilia 2007/2013 4.1.1.1). The testing facility is equipped with an heliostat providing a wide solar beam inside the lab, an optical bench for mounting and aligning the HCPV components, electronic equipments to characterize the I-V curves of multijunction cells operated up to 2000 suns, a system to circulate a fluid in the heat sink at controlled temperature and flow-rate, a data logging system with sensors to measure temperatures in several locations and fluid pressures at the inlet and ou…
Overirradiance (Cloud Enhancement) Events at High Latitudes
2013
Contrary to intuition, solar irradiance peaks at partially cloudy conditions. Clouds can boost sunlight by over 1.5 times, even at high latitudes. Depending on cloud velocity, the bursts last from seconds to minutes. Measuring irradiance on a tilted surface with 10-ms resolution allows for a detailed study of such events in Southern Norway, almost at sea level. All monthly maxima from April through September 2011 exceeded 1300 W/m2. The slow sensor registered an annual maximum of 1413 W/m2, while the fast sensor's range was found insufficient. A burst reaching 1528 W/m2 was registered in June 2012. Near the Equator, bursts exceeding 1800 W/m2 have been observed. These numbers are striking s…
Spectral Transmittance of Intraocular Lenses under Natural and Artificial Illumination
2011
Purpose To compare the spectral transmission of different intraocular lenses (IOLs) with either ultraviolet (UV) or blue-light filters, and to analyze the performance of these filters with artificial light sources as well as sunlight. Design Experimental study. Methods The spectral transmission curve of 10 IOLs was measured using a PerkinElmer Lambda 800 UV/VIS spectrometer (Waltham, MA). Different filtering simulations were performed using the D65 standard illuminant as daylight and standard incandescent lamp and fluorescent bulb illuminants. Main Outcomes Measures Spectral transmittance of the IOLs. Results All the IOLs studied provide good UVC (200–280 nm) and UVB (280–315 nm) protection…
Optimal temporal resolution for detailed studies of cloud-enhanced sunlight (Overirradiance)
2013
Enhancement of sunlight by clouds can lead to irradiance peaks much exceeding the extraterrestrial levels - close to 2 suns near the Equator and at least 1.5 suns at latitudes of about 60°. Some extreme overirradiance events can last many minutes, but durations in the order of 1 second are also possible. The present paper reports the shortest bursts recorded in Southern Norway in the years 2012 and 2013. Our records of 10-millisecond resolution from 2012 show that the optimal instantaneous irradiance sampling interval is less than 0.15 s at the present test site, while the optimal averaging time is less than 0.13 s. We propose simple equations for deriving these times in an arbitrary geogra…
100-millisecond Resolution for Accurate Overirradiance Measurements
2013
Cloud enhancement of sunlight results in peak irradiance well exceeding extraterrestrial levels, even at high latitudes. Values above 1.8 kW/m2 are possible in the equatorial regions. Recently, we detected bursts over 1.5 kW/m2 in Northern Europe at latitude close to 60°N. Overirradiance events (intensities much higher than 1 sun) can last tens of minutes, as well as less than 1 s. They may have caused series arcing in photovoltaic modules, leading to fires and loss of property. The accurate measurement of short bursts requires sensors with response times on the order of milliseconds. The long response times of thermopile pyranometers smooth out important details of very short-lived peaks a…
Two light sensors decode moonlight versus sunlight to adjust a plastic circadian/circalunidian clock to moon phase
2021
AbstractMany species synchronize their physiology and behavior to specific hours. It is commonly assumed that sunlight acts as the main entrainment signal for ~24h clocks. However, the moon provides similarly regular time information, and increasingly studies report correlations between diel behavior and lunidian cycles. Yet, mechanistic insight into the possible influences of the moon on ~24hr timers is scarce.We studiedPlatynereis dumeriliiand uncover that the moon, besides its role in monthly timing, also schedules the exact hour of nocturnal swarming onset to the nights’ darkest times. Moonlight adjusts a plastic clock, exhibiting <24h (moonlit) or >24h (no moon) periodicity. Abun…
Sunflow: Sunlight Drives Fast and Green Photochemical Flow Reactions in Simple Microcapillary Reactors - Application to Photoredox and H-Atom-Transfe…
2016
“Sunflow“ – The combination of a microcapillary reactor in continuous flow mode with sunlight as the most sustainable energy source imaginable was applied to a range of photoredox and H-atom-transfer reactions making them both fast and green.
Extreme overirradiance events in Norway: 1.6 suns measured close to 60°N
2015
Abstract We report the most extreme overirradiance event of 1.6 kW/m 2 measured so far in Grimstad, southern Norway (latitude 58°20′), at altitude of only about 60 m a.s.l. Images of the sky conditions taken with a wide-dynamic-range camera suggest that this is not the ultimate value for our location, but that extremes as high as 1.7 kW/m 2 may be possible. The phenomenon was caused by strong forward scattering of sunlight within 3° around the solar disk in thin, broken altocumulus clouds. The normalized spectrum of sunlight during such extreme events is very similar to the normalized clear-sky spectrum measured at Air Mass 1.4 and irradiance of 1.0 kW/m 2 . We suggest that the values excee…
Dynamic daylight simulations: Impact of weather file’s choice
2015
Abstract This paper is the second step of a research project aimed at investigating the impact of the use of different weather data files on daylight simulations’ results. Simulations were carried out for a simple standalone office using three weather files (IWEC, Meteonorm and Satel-Light) for two European locations (Copenhagen and Rome); moreover the office’s exposure was changed according to the four main orientations (North, East, South and West). Results were analyzed both in terms of Annual and Monthly Light Exposures, dynamic daylight performance metrics (DA, DAcon, UDI) and sunlight’s incidence. It was demonstrated that differences between the results obtained with the different wea…
Solid-State Analog of an Optical Interferometer
2004
To some extend one may treat a metal ring with two probes as a solid-state analog of an optical interferometer. One node can be considered as a beam splitter (bi-prism, for example), and the electric current at the other node as an equivalent to a light intensity of an interference pattern formed at a screen. In optics, to obtain a stationary pattern one should use a monochromatic source of radiation, as afterwards in a conventional passive media (i.e. air) the phase of the radiation is preserved. On the contrary, in solids the phase of a conducting electron wavefunction is randomly altered due to inelastic collisions (mainly phonons at high temperatures). Hence, to satisfy the condition of…