Abstract
This study addresses the thermal and energy performance assessment of a Building Integrated Photovoltaic Thermal (BIPVT) system installed on the façade of a test room in Solar XXI, a Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB) located in Lisbon, Portugal. A numerical analysis using the dynamic simulation tool EnergyPlus was carried out for assessing the performance of the test room with the BIPVT integrated on its façade through a parametric analysis of 14 scenarios in two conditions: a) receiving direct solar gains on the glazing surface and b) avoiding direct solar gains on the glazing surface. Additionally, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis of the BIPVT system was performed using ANSYS Fluent. The findings of this work demonstrate that the BIPVT has a good potential to improve the sustainability of the building by reducing the nominal energy needs to achieve thermal comfort, reducing up to 48% the total energy needs for heating and cooling compared to the base case. The operation mode must be adjusted to the other strategies already implemented in the room (e.g., the presence of windows and blinds to control direct solar gains), and the automatic operation mode has proven to have a better performance in the scope of this work.
Highlights
The energy use in buildings in the EU and US represents around 40% of final energy demand [1], and is one of the most significant contributors to the increase of greenhouse gas emissions and the global warming effect
It is important to refer to that the elements are dynamic in terms of heat transfer, and the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis performed in the scope of this work was a steady-state simulation representing the results
The numerical analysis represented a specific hour of the day and room condition in terms of the Tinl, interior wall/module was segmented in two parts: (i) the dynamic simulation of the building in real condition through the temperature and backflow in the outlet
Summary
The energy use in buildings in the EU and US represents around 40% of final energy demand [1], and is one of the most significant contributors to the increase of greenhouse gas emissions and the global warming effect. To maintain a minimum level of comfort for the occupants, in general, significant use of energy is required to operate the systems. The maintenance of minimum indoor comfort plays a significant role in the occupants’ health, working efficiency and overall satisfaction, and shall not be neglected. For this reason, there has been an increasing pressure to conciliate the improvement of occupants’ comfort with the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions caused by the systems that provide comfort. The maximization of comfort is a conflicting objective with the minimization of energy use, which makes energy management in building a complex problem
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