Investigation on the daylight and overall energy performance of semi-transparent photovoltaic facades in cold climatic regions of China

Abstract Building-integrated semi-transparent photovoltaics (STPV) technology has attracted more and more attentions for its obvious advantage in renewable energy utilization. However, the STPV facades have potential conflicts of interest between daylighting and energy efficient. Thus, this paper reported an investigation of the daylighting and overall energy performance of STPV facades in cold climatic regions of China, with the aim of resolving the conflicts. Firstly, the reliability of daylighting model in Daysim was experimentally verified. In addition, a novel dynamic daylighting evaluation metric named “N-Daylit area” was developed, considering the glare phenomenon and setting reasonable indoor illumination thresholds. On basis of this, the effect of several key design parameters, including transmittance、orientation and window-wall ratio (WWR), on the performance of STPV facades installed in a generic reference office was studied, by using a comprehensive simulation method. According to the simulation result, the transmittance and WWR of the STPV facade were recommended to be in the ranges of 50–60% and 40–50%, respectively, for the purpose to improve the energy efficiency of STPV facades with the premise of ensuring a satisfied daylight quality of the tested room. Furthermore, the results also revealed that south facing was the preferred orientation of STPV facades, to obtain the best daylighting quality and the lowest annual net electricity use of the space.

[1]  Peter Lund,et al.  Daylight optimization of multifunctional solar facades , 2000 .

[2]  Christoph F. Reinhart,et al.  Experimental Validation of Autodesk® 3ds Max® Design 2009 and Daysim 3.0 , 2009 .

[3]  Andreas Wagner,et al.  Semi-transparent PV windows: A study for office buildings in Brazil , 2013 .

[4]  Danny H.W. Li,et al.  Energy and cost analysis of semi-transparent photovoltaic in office buildings , 2009 .

[5]  Kang Soo Kim,et al.  An empirical validation of lighting energy consumption using the integrated simulation method , 2013 .

[6]  Ana Paula Melo,et al.  IMPACT OF DIFFERENT DAYLIGHTING SIMULATION RESULTS ON THE PREDICTION OF TOTAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION , 2010 .

[7]  Jan Wienold,et al.  The daylighting dashboard – A simulation-based design analysis for daylit spaces , 2011 .

[8]  Andreas K. Athienitis,et al.  Daylight Performance of Perimeter Office Façades utilizing Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Windows: A Simulation Study , 2015 .

[9]  John Mardaljevic,et al.  Dynamic Daylight Performance Metrics for Sustainable Building Design , 2006 .

[10]  Wei He,et al.  Performance evaluation of a PV ventilated window applying to office building of Hong Kong , 2007 .

[11]  Christoph F. Reinhart,et al.  The daylit area – Correlating architectural student assessments with current and emerging daylight availability metrics , 2012 .

[12]  Young Tae Chae,et al.  Building energy performance evaluation of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) window with semi-transparent solar cells , 2014 .

[13]  Francesco Fiorito,et al.  Building integration of semitransparent perovskite-based solar cells: Energy performance and visual comfort assessment , 2017 .

[14]  Hongxing Yang,et al.  Validation of the Sandia model with indoor and outdoor measurements for semi-transparent amorphous silicon PV modules , 2015 .

[15]  Robin Wilson,et al.  A review of thermal and optical characterisation of complex window systems and their building performance prediction , 2018, Applied Energy.

[16]  Robin Wilson,et al.  Analysis of the daylight performance of a glazing system with Parallel Slat Transparent Insulation Material (PS-TIM) , 2017 .

[17]  Cristina Cornaro,et al.  Energy Saving Assessment of Semi-Transparent Photovoltaic Modules Integrated into NZEB , 2017 .

[18]  Hongxing Yang,et al.  Numerical investigation of the energy saving potential of a semi-transparent photovoltaic double-skin facade in a cool-summer Mediterranean climate , 2016 .

[19]  Takahiko Miyazaki,et al.  Energy savings of office buildings by the use of semi-transparent solar cells for windows , 2005 .

[20]  Shen Xu,et al.  Optimal PV cell coverage ratio for semi-transparent photovoltaics on office building facades in central China , 2014 .

[21]  Simon Buckle,et al.  Mitigation of climate change , 2009, The Daunting Climate Change.

[22]  Helena Bülow-Hübe,et al.  Energy-Efficient Window Systems - Effects on Energy Use and Daylight in Buildings , 2001 .

[23]  Francesco Martellotta,et al.  Improving energy and visual performance in offices using building integrated perovskite-based solar cells: A case study in Southern Italy , 2017 .

[24]  Hongxing Yang,et al.  Comparison of energy performance between PV double skin facades and PV insulating glass units , 2017 .