Energy Optimization of Road Tunnel Lighting Systems

Ferdinando Salata, Iacopo Golasi, Simone Bovenzi, Emanuele De Lieto Vollaro, Francesca Pagliaro, Lucia Cellucci, Massimo Coppi, Franco Gugliermetti and Andrea De Lieto Vollaro
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Ferdinando Salata: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Iacopo Golasi: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Simone Bovenzi: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Emanuele De Lieto Vollaro: DIMI—Università degli Studi "Roma TRE", Via Vito Volterra, 62, 00146 Rome, Italy
Francesca Pagliaro: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Lucia Cellucci: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Massimo Coppi: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Franco Gugliermetti: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Andrea De Lieto Vollaro: DIAEE—Area Fisica Tecnica, Università degli Studi di Roma "Sapienza", Via Eudossiana, 18, 00184 Rome, Italy

Sustainability, 2015, vol. 7, issue 7, 1-17

Abstract: A road tunnel is an enclosed and covered infrastructure for the vehicular traffic. Its lighting system provides 24 h of artificial sources only, with a higher amount of electric power used during the day. Due to safety reasons, when there is natural lighting outside the tunnel, the lighting levels in the stretches right after the entrance and before the exit must be high, in order to guide the driver’s eye towards the middle of the tunnel where the luminance must guarantee safe driving, avoid any over-dimensioning of the lighting systems, and produce energy savings. Such effects can be reached not only through the technological advances in the field of artificial lighting sources with high luminous efficiency, but also through new materials for road paving characterized by a higher reflection coefficient than other ordinary asphalts. This case study examines different technical scenarios, analyzing and comparing possible energy and economic savings. Traditional solutions are thus compared with scenarios suggesting the solutions previously mentioned. Special asphalts are interesting from an economic point of view, whereas the high costs of LED sources nowadays represent an obstacle for their implementation.

Keywords: road tunnel; lighting systems; LED; special asphalts; energy optimization; amortization costs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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