Large- and small-scale fire test of a building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) façade system

Abstract

The number of installed photovoltaic (PV) modules has increased significantly over the last years, and using available building surfaces to generate electricity by integrating PV modules in the construction is an attractive option. Building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) or other vented claddings can spread fires rapidly to large parts of a building if the fire is allowed to propagate. To investigate this hazard, a large-scale SP FIRE 105 façade fire test was conducted. A façade measuring 4000 mm × 6000 mm covered with BIPV modules was exposed to flames that represent the fire plume from a window in a room at flashover. The results from the test show that critical failures, like falling objects and vertical flame propagation, can be expected in such constructions. These results highlight the importance of details in mounting of BIPV-façades and to require proper documentation from relevant fire tests of such systems. Small-scale cone calorimeter tests were conducted on the studied BIPV module to provide material properties of the combustible parts of the installation. These aspects should be considered when planning new or when retrofitting façades, to prevent escalation of fires. The results presented are, however, only valid for the configuration that was tested. Other BIPV-façades should also be investigated to study how these constructions can be built safely in the future with regard to critical details.