light diffuser

1

Select the perfect

light diffuserp o s s i b i l i t i e s

i n v e n t o r y

p r a c t i c a l e x a m p l e s

Foto

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PYRASIED Diffuser Company is specialised in plastics

that make light diffuse. Our diffuser materials offer an

optimum balance between high light transmission*

and excellent dispersion of light - without the light’s

becoming distractingly visible, of course. The quality

of our plastic diffusers is exceptional because of the

use of nanotechnologies, precision processing and

the very best additives and raw materials. These pure

nano-additives are crucial to the optimum balance

between light transmission and diffusion. With our dif-

fusers, you get minimum light loss, maximum bespo-

ke diffusion and colour purity.

Wide assortment

Since there are so many different applications and so

many different light sources with a very diverse range

of light spectra, angles of egress and temperatures,

we have put together a broad range of diffusers with

disparate characteristics and properties. Nearly eve-

ry application comes with its own requirements and,

with our collection, we offer you the desired flexibility.

PYRASIEDdiffusers

2

3

Which material to use? 4

Photometric properties 5

Standard collection 6

Professional collection 8

Advanced collection 10

Decision tree 12

Optical plastics 14

Light guide plates 15

Diffuser tubes 16

Round rod “Ghost” 17

Additional services 18

List of terms 19

Practical examples 20

Also good to know 22

This documentation provides a complete overview of

our entire assor tment of diffusers. We’ve worked on

this enthusiastically for seven years!

To maintain an overview in our wide assor tment, we

distinguish among:

• Standard collection (good properties, the most fa-

vorable price)

• Professional collection (above-average quality,

good price)

• Advanced collection (optimised diffusers with the

very best properties, the highest ‘efficiency’ and a

corresponding price)

Differing material properties

The diffuser collections consist of various materials,

namely acrylic, polycarbonate and PETG.

These plastics have considerably differing proper-

ties, so that you can always satisfy the requirements

demanded by a given application. The diffusers are

kept in inventory in various thicknesses, light transmis-

sions, diffusion factors, shapes and surface types.

The decision trees on page 12 are there to assist you

in making the proper selection. On page 20, you’ll

find three frequently occurring practical examples

with the proper solution.

Quality and research

PYRASIED Diffuser Company has its own technical light

laboratory and test environments. We use these to

inspect the quality of the diffusers (light colour, dif-

fusion and transmission) in each batch or series of

production.

Recommendations

Naturally, we are glad to provide you with all pos-

sible support to find the appropriate solution. Need

advice? Then please feel free to contact us by telep-

hone on +31 587676100 or mail us at [email protected].

We can help you quickly.

Sied Kooistra

*At page 19 of the brochure you’ll find a summary

and explanation of the terms used.

4

The choice is simple: acrylic

Since acrylic has the best photometric properties, our

principal is: always acrylic. Acrylic (PMMA) has an ex-

tremely high rate of light transmission and is 100% co-

lourless. It is stable under the influence of UV, colour-

fast, resistant to temperatures of up to 80° C, fairly rigid

and resistant to many chemicals. Another of acrylic’s

advantages is that it can be produced in small quan-

tities, offering flexibility. Acrylic is durable and recycla-

ble. It has a fire classification of E in accordance with

EN13501. Acrylic burns without forming smoke.

We distinguish between two types of acrylic: extruded

acrylic and cast acrylic. A significant advantage of

extruded acrylic is that it barely has any thickness to-

lerance.

So when do we advise polycarbonate?

Polycarbonate (Makrolon®) can be considered when

you’re looking for material that is impact-resistant. Or

when a fire classification of EN 13501 Bd1s0 is re-

quired. In contrast to acrylic, polycarbonate can be

bent when cold and can resist higher temperatures

- up to 120° C. Polycarbonate is less rigid than acrylic

and is not UV-resistant of itself. Thickness tolerances

are quite small since polycarbonate is extruded.

When do we use PETG?

An advantage of PETG (Vivak®) is that fewer toxic ga-

ses are released in the event of a fire than with po-

lycarbonate. At Schiphol airpor t, only PETG may be

used. PETG is excellent for fairly low-temperature for-

mation without pre-drying. This is a huge advantage.

However, the temperature for use is also quite low:

70° C is the limit.

Exterior applications

impact-resistant, fire classification BS1d0

minimal thickness tolerance

structural application

polycarbonate UVPPETG UVP

acrylic XTpolycarbonate UVP

cast acrylicthickness > 10mm

Interior applications

impact-resistant, fire classification BS1d0

minimal thickness tolerance

structural application

food airports

polycarbonatePETG

acrylic XTpolycarbonate

PETG PETGcast acrylicthickness > 10mm

Which mater ia l to use?

Decision tree for material selection

5

When selecting the proper light diffuser, both material

properties and photometric properties are important.

Here we speak of light transmission, diffusion and ef-

ficiency. Before presenting the various diffusers, we

would like to explain these concepts briefly. Page 19

contains a list of definitions with more technical ter-

minology.

Light transmission

Light transmission (the degree of opacity) is the

amount of light that is measured on the side of the

diffuser opposite the light source. Maximum light

transmission is 92%. The loss of 8% is related to reflec-

tion losses that light encounters upon entering and

exiting the surfaces. These losses can be reduced by

anti-reflective surface treatments.

Diffusion

The most prevalent requirement for diffusion (disper-

sion of light) is that we don’t want to see the small

points of light created by LEDs. But this is not enough!

The light surface must also be uniform. You can read

more about this in the practical examples on page

20.

Efficiency

The efficiency of the diffuser is the degree of light

transmission multiplied by diffusion. The greater the

number, the more efficient the diffuser. This aligns with

our objective: the greatest possible light transmission

and the greatest possible diffusion.

Half-peak divergence angle

What is the importance of this? With illuminated ad-

ver tising, we always want to have the adver tisement

be easily observed. This means that the half-peak di-

vergence angle must be as large as possible (see

graph 1). But with lighting, we want the light to shine

only in the precise location where we want to have

it - i.e., a limited half-peak divergence (see graph 2).

The half-peak divergence angle is also very impor-

tant when establishing UGR values. This is a standard

with which lighting must comply. Using several diffu-

sers contributes to achieving the proper UGR norm.

Photomet r ic proper t ies

Graphs half-peak divergence angle

Graph 1. Large half-peak divergence angle Pyraled® ST1

Graph 2. Limited half-peak divergence angle Pyraled® ST6

Light diffusers are nothing new, of course. The classic

opaline sheets are light diffusers that have been used

since the middle of the previous century - in light

boxes, for example. The often-used (light box) opaline

sheet has light transmission of around 30% and good

diffusion. This is fine for classic light sources and suf-

ficient installation depth. These classic opaline sheets

will cer tainly remain in our assor tment and we call

them our standard diffusers. We have even added

sheets to this standard collection, namely: additional

thicknesses of opaline polycarbonate with 30% light

transmission. One advantage of these sheets is that

they are white when the light is turned off. The price

of these common types is also quite favourable. In

addition to opaline sheets, this range also includes

diffusers that are not made of opal, but that provide

limited diffusivity due to their surface structure (satin-

finish or matte). The primary purpose of these diffusers

is to avoid direct bright observation of the light source

and, often, to provide the light source with protection

or to make it water tight.

Assortment

Table 1 provides a complete summary of the standard

diffusion assor tment that we keep in inventory for you.

The assor tment includes sheets of extruded acrylic

(XT), cast acrylic (GS), polycarbonate and PETG. Ver-

sato® is our own brand name for cast acrylic. Primo®

is our brand name for extruded acrylic (XT).

BENEFITS• good diffusivity

• stays white when the light is off

• most favorable price

Standard col lect ion

6

Luminaire of Spinlight

7

Type number Thicknessmm

Light trans-mission %

Diffusivity Efficiency Half-peak diver-gence angle

Impact resistant

UV stable Fire classificationEN.13501

Thickness tolerance

Material Surface

Versato 145.10000* 3 88 0,26 23 9 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

Primo XT 245.10000 3 87 no pigment - - reasonable high E small acrylic XT satin/satin

Versato M21000 3 87 0,34 29 11 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

PETG clear satin 2 85 no pigment - 10 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- PETG satin/satin

Versato 145N2* 3 72 0,47 34 20 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

Makrolon GP2150 3 50 0,70 37 46 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss

Versato 433 AS* 3 38 0,91 34 54 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic gloss

Versato 433 AS 4 37 0,95 35 54 reasonable high E 0.8mm +/- cast acrylic gloss

Versato 433 AS 5 36 0,90 32 55 reasonable high E 0.9mm +/- cast acrylic gloss

PC OP NU499 UV 2 36 0,90 33 54 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss




Makrolon GP 130 2 30 0,80 25 54 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss

Vivak 2130 UV 30 3 30 0,90 26 54 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- PETG gloss

Primo XT N385 2 30 0,98 30 55 reasonable high E small acrylic XT gloss




Table 1. Standard collection

Luminaire of IDFRM

*Available to 20mm thick

8

Recent improvements in diffusers have been ac-

celerated by the emergence of more efficient light

sources, changed societal viewpoints (sustainability

and energy-saving) and technological innovations

such as extremely precise process control and nano-

technology. Professional diffusers offer more diversity

than standard diffusers. The purpose of these impro-

vements is mainly to find the right balance between

transmission and diffusion. This means diffusers with

40-60% light transmission instead of the 30% from

standard diffusers.

The optimisation from standard to professional lies

mainly in the composition of the additives. These na-

no-additives make the sheet “more efficient” - either

by allowing more light to be transmitted with equiva-

lent diffusivity or, indeed, with the same light transmis-

sion but achieving improved diffusivity compared to

standard diffusers. This means either increased light

efficiency with equivalent input or equivalent light ef-

ficiency with decreased input. An efficiency advan-

tage: lower investments and lower operational costs.

Other great advantages of using nano-addi-

tives are colour purity and stability.

Assortment

Type PyraLed® RG is a pure and cost-effective me-

dium transmission sheet that is very suitable for use

in light boxes in which LEDs are placed around the

light box. The satin-finish surface on the inside ensures

excellent dispersion of the light: diffusivity is excellent,

as is transmission. The PyraLed®3 has become a clas-

sic. This sheet is slightly bluish, as we have used a so-

called ‘brightener’. The 1113QN is a type that is often

used in luminaires - warm white, double-sided satin-

finish surface, and with a nice balance between dif-

fusion and transmission.

Professional collection

Standard collection

BENEFITS• efficiency advantage

• colour purity

• colour stability

Profess ional col lect ion

Materials research of Pyraled®3 by Beersnielsen



Diffusi-vity

Efficiency Half-peak diver-gence angle

Impact resistant


Thickness tolerance

Material Surface

PyraLed® RG 3 60 0,73 44 38 reasonable high E small acrylic XT 2 types of satin

PyraLed® RG 4 52 0,90 47 43 reasonable high E small acrylic XT 2 types of satin

PyraLed®4 3 60 0,75 45 45 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic satin/gloss

Setaled® 3 60 0,65 39 34 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic gloss/gloss

PyraLed® 1113QN 3 59 0,68 40 36 reasonable high E 0.7mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

PyraLed® 1113QN 4 53 0,65 35 39 reasonable high E 0.8mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

PyraLed®1* 2 53 0,80 41 to be measured high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

PyraLed®1 3 55 0,80 45 to be measured high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

PyraLed®1 UV 4 42 0,90 37 to be measured high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate matt/gloss

PyraLed®1b UV* 4 42 0,80 35 to be measured high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

PyraLed®3 10 30 0,78 23 73 reasonable high E 1.4mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

PyraLed®3 20 18 0,65 12 45 reasonable high E 2.6mm +/- cast acrylic satin/satin

9

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*Running out of stockTable 2. Professional collection

10

in ceilings with backlighting. The

special microstructure of the

surface contributes to this type’s

perfect appearance. This diffuser

is also recommended as a front

sheet for light-conducting plates.

Bayer’s Makrolon® DX series is the very

best quality polycarbonate diffuser. We keep

all of the types indicated in stock. The DX series

is extremely suitable for use in lighting and illumina-

ted adver tising. In exterior applications, you do need

to use a UV-stabilised version. The DXAR8141 type of

light diffuser is the only one with a scratch-resistant

layer that is also UV-stabilised and very chemical-re-

sistant. So graffiti can be easily removed: practical in

such critical environments such as football stadiums,

parking garages and public transpor tation stations.

Warm and Cool tints are distinguished throughout the

entire Makrolon® DX range. We recommend using

cool white LEDs. For coloured LEDs, warm is better.

This yields a purer representation of the colour and

less whitening. The Makrolon® Lumen series is not yet

in stock but can be supplied. These polycarbonate

diffusers have high light transmission but low diffusi-

vity and are therefore par ticularly suitable as diffuser

sheets in front of a light guide plate.

The advanced diffusers have the best quality. This

quality can be found in the score for variable “effici-

ency”, a multiplication of transmission and diffusion.

In shor t, the most light transmission and the best dif-

fusion. There are also advanced diffusers made of

acrylic or polycarbonate.

The very best additives are used in the advanced

diffusers. In the OPY series made under our direction,

nano-additives are used that range in size between

50 and 100 nm. The method for dissolving these par-

ticles and keeping them in solution requires extremely

stringent process control; our producer succeeds in

this magnificently.

Advanced diffuser assortment

PyraLed® OPY2 and OPY3 are the best that is availa-

ble in cast acrylic. PyraLed® ST6 is an extruded acry-

lic, i.e. without thickness tolerance, and of very good

quality. This diffuser is par ticularly suitable for use in

backlit light boxes - as a front sheet - or as a sheet

BENEFITS• highest efficiency

• best diffusion/diffusivity

• colour purity and stability

Advanced col lect ion

11



Diffusivity Efficiency Half-peak diver-gence angle

Impact resistant


Thickness tolerance

Material Surface

PyraLed® ST6 1,5 89 0,49 43 33 reasonable high E small acrylic XT matt/gloss

PyraLed® ST6 2 88 0,60 53 33 reasonable high E small acrylic XT matt/gloss


PyraLed® OPY2 10 83 0,48 40 25 reasonable high E 1.4 cast acrylic gloss/gloss

PyraLed® OPY2 BS 5 75 0,55 41 26 reasonable high E 0.9 cast acrylic satin/satin


Makrolon® DX141 1,5 76 0,78 59 39 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX141 3 63 0,82 52 60 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX139 1,5 65 0,89 58 76 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX139 3 58 0,89 52 75 high no Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV 1141 1,5 76 0,77 59 47 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV 1141 3 63 0,78 49 60 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV 1139 1,5 65 0,89 58 76 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV 1139 3 58 0,81 47 75 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV NR141 1,5 74 0,73 54 about 47 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate matt/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV NR141 3 60 0,77 46 about 60 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate matt/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV NR139 1,5 67 0,92 62 about 76 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate matt/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV NR139 3 57 0,86 49 about 75 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate matt/gloss

Makrolon® DX UV AR8141* 3 60 0,80 48 about 75 high high Bs1d0 0.1mm +/- polycarbonate gloss/gloss


PyraLed® OPY3 10 39 0,77 30 57 reasonable high E 1.4 cast acrylic gloss/gloss



Table 3. Advanced collection

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*With scratch resistant layer

12

Edge Lighting Side LightingBack Lighting

close to LEDs

high thickness

PyraLed® OPY2 10mmPyraLed® OPY2BS 10mmPyraLed® OPY3 10 mmPyraLed® OPY3BS 10mmPyraLed®3 10mmPyraLed®3 20mm

PyraLed® OPY1 LightPlex®

minimal PyraLed RGthickness Primo XT N385tolerance PCNU499UV PyraLed®1 PyraLed® ST1

impact resistant PCNU499UV fire classification PyraLed®1BS1d0 PyraLed® ST1 Vivak® (airports)

exterior Primo XT N385application PCNU499UV PyraLed® ST1 Versato® 433 PyraLed®3 PyraLed® OPY3 10 mm PyraLed® OPY3BS 10mm

low price Primo XT N385 PCNU499UV PyraLed®1 PyraLed®1113QN

minimal PyraLed ST1thickness PyraLed® RGtolerance PyraLed® ST6 Makrolon® DX

impact resistant Makrolon® DX fire classification PyraLed®1BS1d0

exterior PyraLed® ST1application PyraLed® RG PyraLed® ST6 PyraLed® OPY2 (BS) PyraLed® OPY3 (BS) Makrolon® DX

low price Versato® 145 N2 M21000 145.10000 245.10000 PyraLed® RG SetaLed®

PyraLed®4 PyraLed®1113QN

minimal PyraLed® RGthickness tolerance PyraLed®1

impact resistant PyraLed®1 fire classification BS1d0

exterior PyraLed® RGapplication PyraLed®3 SetaLed®

PyraLed®4 PyraLed® 1113QN

low price PyraLed® RG PyraLed®1 PyraLed®3 SetaLed®


high diffusivity high transmission

more depth diffuser light guide plate medium-high transmissionmedium-high diffusivity

edgelit

Decis ion t ree for i l luminated adver t i s ing/s igns

13

Decis ion t ree for luminai res

Edge Lighting Side LightingBack Lighting

flat luminaires

PyraLed® OPY1 LightPlex®

minimal PyraLed ST1thickness PyraLed® RGtolerance PyraLed® ST6 Makrolon® DX

impact resistant Makrolon® DX fire classification PyraLed®1BS1d0

exterior PyraLed® ST1application PyraLed® RG PyraLed® ST6 PyraLed® OPY2 (BS) PyraLed® OPY3 (BS) Makrolon® DX

low price Versato® 145 N2 M21000 145.10000 245.10000 PyraLed® RG SetaLed®

PyraLed®4 PyraLed®1113QN


impact resistant PyraLed®1 fire classification PCNU499UVBS1d0





minimal PyraLed® RGthickness PyraLed®1tolerance












directional diffusers(lightshaper)

diffusers

distance between LEDs

< 10mm

distance between LEDs

> 10mmhigh transmission

line luminaires diffuser light guide plate medium-high transmissionmedium-high diffusivity

medium-high transmissionmedium-high diffusivity

medium-high transmissionmedium-high diffusivity

edgelit

Makrolon® SXLuminit® foilPYR-CDP 3APYR-DDP 2A

Another group of optical plastics consists sheets that

give light a specific direction or that multiply light

sources. We carry a number of products in this type

of material, from producers including Jungbecker,

Bayer and Luminit.

Deglaring platen (Jungbecker)

Glare is “dir ty light”. A light source placed fur ther out

and that shines too broadly is distracting: this “dir ty ”

light does not contribute to the light

needed in the (work) lo-

Luminit® foil

Luminit® foil is a light-shaping material on a polycar-

bonate substrate. The microstructure works as a lens

and changes the parameters of the light bundle. This

way, circular bundles can be transformed into an

oval. Or a bundle of light can be bent to a 20-de-

gree angle. These foils are very promising. The 20°

“light bender” is in stock. Sample materials are availa-

ble for other types that can be supplied from factory

stock.


Function Impact resistant


Thickness tolerance

Material Surface

PYR-CDP 3a 3 deglaring reasonable n.a. E small cast acrylic structure

PYR-DDP 2a 2 deglaring reasonable n.a. E small cast acrylic structure

Makrolon® SX 1,45 x-direction reasonable to be measured Bs1d0 1.4mm +/- polycarbonate structure

Luminit® foil 0,3 20° light deflection n.a. to be measured Bs1d0 small polycarbonate structure

Welle corrugated sheet 2,8 optical corrugated sheet high yes Bs1d0 1.4mm +/- polycarbonate hexagon structure

Opt ical p last ics

Table 4. Optical plastics

cation, but is visually disruptive. De-glaring sheets are

sheets that limit the light’s shining in order to minimise

this “dir ty ” light. CDP and DDP are both de-glaring

sheets, either 2 or 3 mm thick, made of clear structu-

ral pressed acrylic.

X-diffuser Makrolon® SX

Our Makrolon® SX diffuser is an exceptionally succes-

sful example of directed diffusion. Ideal for use with

LED strips to conver t light points into a single straight

line.

14

LightPlex® is a light-conducting plate, also called a

light guide plate (LGP). This is a sheet that emits light,

i.e. a light source. LEDs are placed at the butt end;

the light runs through the plate and is reflected out-

ward through a pattern of points, so the light comes

from the surface. A self-learning computer program

is used to beam the points into the sheet such that

the light sheet lights up uniformly. In shor t, the self-

learning algorithm performs calculations for each se-

parate size, also taking the placement of the LEDs

into account and the way in which the points must be

placed for a truly uniform result.

The LightPlex® sheet guarantees the highest light ef-

ficiency and the most perfect uniformity of all LGP

technologies currently available. The material does

not turn yellow and is exceptionally durable. Because

the sheet is perfectly clear, the colour that the sheet

emits is exactly the colour of the illuminating LEDs. So

this makes it very suitable for RGB.

LightPlex® can be made in sizes up to 2000 x 2000

mm, in thicknesses from 4 - 15 mm. Larger swathes

of light - with LEDs on two sides - can be made by

placing LightPlex® sheets with their polished butt ends

against each other. This can be accomplished wit-

hout a noticeable seam of light. A suitable diffuser,

such as the the PyraLed ST6, is required. In this man-

ner, light tracks of unlimited length can be made.

LightPlex® is supplied without LEDs. We deliver exclusi-

vely to professionals in the lighting, signing and inte-

rior construction sectors. These professionals have the

necessary knowledge and experience in the area of

light sources and power supplies. We are glad to pro-

vide advice, of course. LightPlex® is made of cast

acrylic and therefore has a thickness tolerance. The

complete product datasheet for LightPlex® can be

downloaded from our website.

L ight guide plates

15

LightPlex® by Everseen lichtreklame

LightPlex® by Multiapplicator® Bobis Engineering BV

16

Outer diameter

Wall thick-ness in mm


Material

Ø 40mm 2 82 acrylic XT













Our diffuser range consists of both sheets and tubes.

We have three variants of tubes that make light dif-

fuse. XT satin is a right opal tube with a very beautiful

satin-finish surface. XT opal is an opal tube with a

glossy surface. The PyraLed diffuser tube is made of

light satin polycarbonate, very suitable for luminaires

and for lighting applications where impact-resistant

material is important. This is a range that is still under

development, which means that changes to the as-

sor tment are possible. The diameters shown in table

5 are currently in stock. Diffuser tubes are not suitable

for exterior applications.

D i f fuser tubes

Table 6. Satin tube

Outer diameter



Material

Ø 70mm 2,5 65 polycarbonate

Ø 120mm 2,5 65 polycarbonate

Ø 150mm 3 65 polycarbonate



Table 7. Opal tube

Table 5. Pyraled® diffuser tube matt

Outer diameter



Material









Ø 300mm 4 about 30 cast acrylic





Saxion Hogeschool by Proliad LED Lighting

Diameter Material Surface Impact resistant

Fire classificationEN.13501

Ø 20mm acrylic XT gloss reasonable E

Ø 40mm acrylic XT gloss reasonable E

Round rod “Ghost ”

Table 8. Round rod “Ghost”

17

Ghost round rod is a lighting conductor, an edge-lit

round rod. By shining light on the upper and/or lower

edge of the rod, the entire rod lights up to a length

of max. 1m.

The Ghost round rod is made of cast acrylic and

contains nano-additives that not only conduct light

throughout the entire rod, but also make it glow along

Table 7. Opal tube

the sides. Ghost round rod can be used beautifully

as a lighting rod in display windows, in works of ar t,

decors, banisters, balustrades and furniture. The rod

is clear and transparent when the light is off. Ghost

round rod can be supplied currently in 20mm and

40mm diameters.

Amsterdam Light Festival, picture Janus van den Eijnden

Decor by Invent Design

18

We would be glad to turn our semi-finished product

into a three quarters finished product or a final pro-

duct for you with our modern machines. We can take

care of all processing with a rapid laser, various CNC

milling machines, bending equipment, ovens, poli-

shing lathes and gluing technologies. This, together

with our extensive inventories, makes PYRASIED Diffuser

Company a reliable, exper t link in your supply chain.

Ultimately, you want the perfect material for your pro-

duct with as little cost and effor t as possible. And you

want it delivered on time, custom-made or processed

into a final product, packaged tidily, inspected and

possibly numbered. For us, this is no problem. PYRA-

SIED Diffuser Company makes sure that everything is

done perfectly. No uncertainty in the supply chain.

We work as par tners, constructively and with open

communication. For us, additional services are an

extension of our standard task as a distributor. We gu-

arantee that the right semi-finished products are in

our warehouse in the right quantities.

We have 30 years of experience in fabricating plas-

tics. In both large one-off productions and in recurring

high-quality series work. We have an extensive fleet of

machines and wide-ranging knowledge about fabri-

cation possibilities and material properties.

Material Cutting Milling Lasering Bending Cold bending

Glueing Drilling Faceting Polishing Matting Printing

acrylic XT X X X X X X X X X

cast acrylic X X X X X X X X X X

polycarbonate X X X X X X X X X X

PETG X X X X X X X X X X

Addi t ional ser v ices

Table 9. Additional services for each type of material

Aufheller (brightener) an additive that makes the sheet appear brighter.

Backlit the light source is behind the diffuser sheet.

Diffusivity the degree to which the light is dispersed.

Thickness tolerance a difference in the thickness within a sheet. For A-quality cast acrylic, the norm is +/- 0.4 mm +10% nominal thickness,

so a 10-mm plate runs from 8.6 to 11.4 mm. Within a single sheet!

Edgelit the light source is placed on the edge of the sheet and shines into the sheet (see LGP).

Efficiency the degree of diffusion multiplied by the average degree of light transmission across the spectrum.

Extrusion a continuous production process in which the sheet comes out of a flat extruder and is then formed to the proper thickness/shape.

Cast acrylic acrylic made by hardening between glass sheets.

Glare “dir ty ” light. A light source placed fur ther out and that shines too broadly is distracting:

it does not contribute to the light needed in the (work) location, but is visually disruptive. Related to the concept of URG.

Half-peak angle the optical angle with respect to the perpendicular which reduces the light beam’s strength to 50% of the perpendicular angle.

of divergence

LGP light guide plate a transparent plastic sheet into which a pattern has been beamed, so that light introduced by LEDs on the side is allowed to radiate

uniformly across the surface of the entire plastic sheet (see LightPlex® on page 15).

Lightshaping a microstructure that works as a lens and changes the parameters of the light bundle.

Nano-diffusers diffusers whose diffusivity is caused by light-dispersing par ticles smaller than 100nm.

Side-lit this term is used when the light source(s) are placed behind and to the side of the sheet. The heart of the light bundles shines parallel to

the diffuser sheet. Often used for double-sided light boxes or boxes with limited installation depth. Also for shallow furniture.

Transmission for lighting, the amount of light that gets through the diffuser; in other words, the amount measured on the side of the diffuser opposite the

light source. Often displayed as a graph over the spectrum of visible light.

UGR norm Unified Glare Rating - a measure of direct blinding by luminaires. Established in EN 12464-1.

L i s t of te rms

19

20

Elaboration: in order to comply with the requirements

of fire safety class B, UV-stabilised polycarbonate is

required. For maximum energy efficiency, an advan-

ced diffuser is required with the highest efficiency.

Efficiency = transmission x diffusion, i.e. the highest

transmission with the best diffusion yields the highest

score. Simple and effective. So we select a diffuser

from the DX series. Type DX 1139 and type DX NR139

(1 side matt) satisfy the requirements. A thickness of

1.5 mm with an area of 1000 x 1000mm will sag. So

the best is a 3-mm matt. Even if this sags slightly, you

won’t see it because of the matt surface. Therefore:

PyraLed type DX NR139. This has a diffusivity score of

0.92. The definition is D = A/B, where A is the distance

between the light sources (LED lines count as a sin-

gle light source!!!) and B is the distance between the

back of the sheet and the light source. So A = D x B

or, in other words, A = 0.9 x 10 = 9cm. The LED lines

or LED points must therefore be no more than 9cm

apart.

Please note: often, LEDs on an LED strip are close to

each other. To achieve uniform surfaces, this is not at

all necessary. It’s best to keep the distance between

the LEDs the same as the distance between the strips.

For this reason, PCBs are often used instead of strips,

with LEDs in a matrix. It’s easier to achieve a uniform

distribution by using Light Guide Plates (LGP, such as

LightPlex). They are also very thin (minimum 4mm thick

LGP), with less loss but often with higher costs. (LGPs

are par t of our delivery assor tment, with maximum

sizes of 2000 x 2000 or 1500 x 3000 in 1 laser surface

with optimisation.)

matt side

B (10cm)

A (10cm)

A (4cm)

A (9cm)

B (6cm)

B (5,5cm)

B (6,7cm)

difuser DX NR139 1,5mm

backing (wood/alu) with the light sources

back side bar (wood/alu) difuser XT N385

PyraLed RG 3mm

PyraLed ST6 2mm

Example 1: the installation depth is 10 cm; fire safety class B must be met; the material must be UV-stable;

the work must be done as energy-efficiently as possible. White LEDs are used, 5000 K. Appearance must

be uniform. The surface is 1000 x 1000mm, horizontal.

P ract ical examples

21

Elaboration: if it’s not too rough a bar, a 5-mm thick-

ness can be used. If things can get rough there, 10-

mm thick material is advisable. Extruded acrylic is

cheap. Since light efficiency is not important, we will

use a type with optimum diffusion: the Primo XT N385.

matt side

B (10cm)

A (10cm)

A (4cm)

A (9cm)

B (6cm)

B (5,5cm)

B (6,7cm)




PyraLed RG 3mm

PyraLed ST6 2mm

Elaboration: an extruded acrylic can be used, as

this has little tolerance. The PyraLed ST6, with a thick-

ness of 2mm, is par ticularly suitable. The PyraLed RG

3-mm type (not yet available in 2-mm thicknesses!)

is slightly less efficient but is cheaper. Let’s calculate

both. The ST6 has a diffusivity score of 0.60. So, ac-

cording to the formula B = A/D, in which B is the dis-

matt side

B (10cm)

A (10cm)

A (4cm)

A (9cm)

B (6cm)

B (5,5cm)

B (6,7cm)




PyraLed RG 3mm

PyraLed ST6 2mm

Example 2: LED strips at a distance of 10cm from each other. The set-up must be as thin as possible. Light

efficiency is not that important, nor is efficiency: it must be cheap and uniform. The surface is ver tical, the

front of a bar.

This has a diffusivity factor of 1.70 in a 5mm

thickness. According to the formula D = A/B,

we get 1.70 = 10/B or, in other words, the

distance to the rear of the plate must not be

less than 6cm.

Example 3: impact resistance is not important, nor is fire safety compliance. But we do want an extremely

efficient solution, preferably as flat as possible. PCB LED boards are used with a point-to-point distance in

the matrix of 4cm. The light colour of the diffuser must be neutral and must be suitable for RGB. It is prac-

tical to have a material without thickness tolerance. The size is 600 x 600mm.

tance between the rear of the diffuser and the light

source and A is the distance between the light sour-

ces and D is the diffusivity factor, the distance to the

rear of the plate is: 4/0.6, or 6.7 cm. If we use RG with

a diffusivity of 0.73, then the distance will be 4/0.73,

or 5.5cm. However, the transmission of the ST6 is more

than 40% higher and will therefore give more light

with less whitening of the RGB.

22

Our assortment: choices made when putting

together the range

PYRASIED develops its own diffusers together with plas-

tics producers. We have these manufactured for us.

Manufacturing is done in Europe, China and Indone-

sia. In addition, we purchase diffusers that manufac-

turers sell in their standard assor tments. Bayer is an

example of this. Extensive research is done into pro-

duction techniques and additives. Our knowledge in

the area of plastics production helps here, as does

our own lighting laboratory. PYRASIED Diffuser Com-

pany has a (almost) complete overview of all diffusers

that can be produced and supplied worldwide. We

know all the manufacturers in Europe and the largest

manufacturers around the world. We have managed

to put together an exceptionally broad range be-

cause we conduct a double strategy: both custo-

mer-specific production and purchasing of standard

materials. We have excellent relationships and direct

access to nearly all of the important manufacturers.

Our current diffuser assor tment is unique in Europe in

terms of size, completeness and deliverability.

How are the measurements performed?

We measure light transmission with a spectrophoto-

meter. The result of the measurement is displayed

graphically: transmission vs. wavelength (colour) of

the light. The graph shows the percentage of the light

- distributed across the visible por tion of the spectrum

- that comes through the sheet. We measure diffu-

sion (dispersion of light) with a set-up using points of

light. The primary requirement for diffusion is that we

don’t want to see the points of the LEDs. But that is not

enough! The light surface must also be uniform. For

this, more distance to the light source is required. If

the distance between the light sources is A and the

distance between the light sources and the sheet is

B, then the diffusion is D = A/B. So the closer you can

get the sheet to the light source while maintaining

uniform lighting, the higher the diffusivity.

Please note: for LED strips, this is the distance between

the LED strips!

To measure the half-peak divergence angle, we first

measure the light intensity perpendicular to the diffu-

ser, with a light source behind it. This is the reference

angle. We then proceed to measure at an increasing

declination toward the plate. The half-peak divergen-

ce angle is the point at which we measure 50% of

the original light intensity.

Remarks about the methodology

All measurements are performed to the best of our

knowledge and ability. However, no rights may be de-

rived from this. For this reason, it’s important that you

yourself test whether the diffuser is suitable for your

application. Proper measurement of transmission, dif-

fusion and half-peak divergence is more difficult than

you might first think. Since the plane of the light’s inci-

dence is equal to that of the measurement surface

in our spectrophotometer, a highly diffusive material

will always show a high level of light loss outside the

measurement surface and will therefore appear to

let less light through than is “actually ” the case for the

sheet. For sheet material with no diffusing additives

- i.e., with only a diffusive surface - you can expect

that the transmission is roughly equivalent to that of

the same material without structure. Measurements

A l so good to know

23

reveal that this is not the case, due to the same ef-

fect. Materials with additives that increase diffusivity

also score lower with a satin-finish surface than do

identical materials with a glossy surface. For acrylic,

92% is the maximum, unless the sheet is given a very

advanced anti-reflective coating such as with the

Optium type.

The light transmission of cast acrylic sheets is inde-

pendent of their thickness. If 10 g of diffusion additive

is added for each mm of thickness in a 5-mm thick

sheet, then this addition will be 5 g per mm in a 20-

mm thick sheet. Nonetheless, measurements show

that differing thicknesses still yield differing transmis-

sion values. Thickness influences the measurement.

For unambiguous statements about transmission, dif-

fusion and half-peak divergence angle, materials of

equal thickness and surface structure must be com-

pared. The measurement results are shown as care-

fully as possible in the tables. But do take note: 87%

transmission in a satin finish is DIFFERENT from 87%

transmission in a glossy finish. And 87% transmission in

a 3-mm thickness is DIFFERENT from 87% transmission

in a 10-mm thickness. Surface structures generally

result in measured transmission loss. By contrast, the

increase in diffusion is quite real! Thicker plates also

result in measured transmission loss while, in reality,

this is actually far less so! The measurement of dif-

fusivity was done by eye, with various observers and

one and the same procedure. The variations among

the observers turn out to be rather large. We have not

performed any statistical analysis that would justify a

statement about the reliability intervals of the measu-

rement data.

For the determination of efficiency: both underlying

variables were given equal weighting. We have no

reason to have either of these be weighted differently

from the other. We are open to substantive contribu-

tions.

The selection table and the measurements are im-

por tant tools for selecting the material likely to be the

most suitable. However, never install without doing a

1:1 test.

Important: with extruded materials, transmission nearly

always decreases with an increase in thickness. This is

because they are produced from the very same ba-

sic material. With cast acrylic, the recipe has chan-

ged and the transmission generally depends on the

thickness!

Guarantees

All materials we supply are guaranteed for their ma-

terial properties as can be found in the datasheets

for acrylic, polycarbonate and PETG. Our factories

generally provide guarantees of at least 10 years. In

the context of technical lighting properties, the reten-

tion of colour purity, transmission and diffusion are, of

course, important. These are covered by the 10-year

guarantee.

Samples and mock-ups

We have sample chains available, selected by ma-

terial sor t, but also from the standard, professional or

advanced collections. Care to request these? Then

please contact us by e-mail at [email protected].

Apol loweg 26

8938 Awarden

T +31(0)58-7676100

www.d i f fusercompany.n l

www.pyr as ied .n l

sa les@pyras ied .n l

Our thanks to the man in the white coat

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