Colour Rendering
Although light sources having the same (correlated) colour temperature will also have the
same colour appearance, this does not necessarily mean that coloured surfaces will look
the same under them. As explained in the CIE system area, surface colour is due to
selective reflection. In other words, those spectral wavelengths contained in the incident
light that are reflected, will determine the colour impression we obtain from the surface.
This is all quite straightforward as long as the light source is a thermal radiator, and thus
displays a continuous spectrum with all wave lengths represented. But a selective
radiator, such as a discharge lamp emits light in a selected number of spectral lines or
bands only, the other wavelengths being absent.
The line spectrum of a mercury lamp (left) while the continuousspectrum of sunlight
(right) both give an impression of ''white' light
How does this affect colour appearance and colour rendering?
That the colour appearance obtained from such a light source can nevertheless be 'white'
is explained by the theory of additive colour mixing. Any spectral colour together with its
complementary colour will produce white [Link] the complementary colour itself is
generally also present in the spectrum - or can be obtained by mixing two other spectral
colours - it is possible to obtain white light by the combination of only two or three single
wavelengths. And although the white light thus obtained may be of a colour appearance
comparable with that of a thermal radiator and therefore can be assigned a correlated
colour temperature - surface colours illuminated by it will often be difficult to
distinguish, as most of the colour shades they are composed of, are absent in the light
falling upon them.
This effect is not restricted to white light (compare for example), the monochromatic
yellow light from a low-pressure sodium lamp with that from an incandescent lamp tilted
with a yellow filter. Although the colour appearance of the two light sources is the same,
colours can be distinguished fairly well under the light of the incandescent lamp, whereas
under the sodium light this is absolutely impossible.
Yellow light from an incandescent source, fitted with ayellow filter (left),allows fairly
good colour perception, butunder the monochromatic yellow light from a low-
pressuresodium lamp (right), it is impossible to distinguish between colours.
The number, arrangement and relative intensity of the spectral lines or bands present in
the visible part of the spectrum of a selective radiator, together determine how far a
random selection of surface colours can be faithfully reproduced under this light This is
called the colour rendering capability of the light source.
Standard colours for assessing the colour rendering index Ra
In 1965 the CIE developed a method for the quantitative assessment of the colour
rendering capability on the basis of eight test colours. First the correlated colour
temperature of the light source under test is assessed. Then, for each test colour, the
colour appearance under the source is calculated as a percentage of that of a black-body
radiator of the same colour temperature. The average result for the eight samples is called
the colour rendering index (Ra). This is a number that may vary between no colour
rendering *) for monochromatic light sources, such as low-pressure sodium lamps - and
one hundred, for true black-body radiators.
The eight original CIE test colours used for assessing the colour rendering index (Ra) of
a light source.
The colour rendering index (Ra for Rendition absolute) is given below for a selection of
much-used lamp types:
For values below 25, the colour rendering index has no practical meaning. As a matter of
fact because of the calculation method used - it can even take negative values!