Building-integrated Photovoltaic Technology Research Articles

Review of Building Integrated Photovoltaics System for Electric Vehicle Charging.

The transition to sustainable transportation has fueled the need for innovative electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions. Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) systems have emerged as a promising technology that combines renewable energy generation with the infra-structure of buildings. This paper comprehensively reviews the BIPV system for EV charging, focusing on its technology, application, and performance. The review identifies the gaps in the existing literature, emphasizing the need for a thorough examination of BIPV systems in the context of EV charging. A detailed review of BIPV technology and its application in EV charging is presented, covering aspects such as the generation of solar cell technology, BIPV system installation, design options and influencing factors. Furthermore, the review examines the performance of BIPV systems for EV charging, focusing on energy, economic, and environmental parameters and their comparison with previous studies. Additionally, the paper explores current trends in energy management for BIPV and EV charging, highlighting the need for effective integration and recommending strategies to optimize energy utilization. Combining BIPV with EV charging provides a promising approach to power EV chargers, enhances building energy efficiency, optimizes the building space, reduces energy losses, and decreases grid dependence. Utilizing BIPV-generated electricity for EV charging provides electricity and fuel savings, offers financial incentives, and increases the market value of the building infrastructure. It significantly lowers greenhouse gas emissions associated with grid and vehicle emissions. It creates a closed-loop circular economic system where energy is produced, consumed, and stored within the building. The paper underscores the importance of effective integration between Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) and Electric Vehicle (EV) charging, emphasizing the necessity of innovative grid technologies, energy storage solutions, and demand-response energy management strategies to overcome diverse challenges. Overall, the study contributes to the knowledge of BIPV systems for EV charging by presenting practical energy management, effectiveness and sustainability implications. It serves as a valuable resource for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers working towards sustainable transportation and energy systems.

A review on technological and urban sustainability perspectives of advanced building‐integrated photovoltaics

AbstractWith the escalating urgency for sustainable energy alternatives, solar power in urban landscapes has gained prominence. Building‐integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems are pivotal in this shift, blending efficient energy generation with architectural aesthetics. This review casts a spotlight on BIPV technologies, with a special emphasis on the less‐explored semitransparent photovoltaics (PVs). These systems are not only energy generators but also natural light facilitators, setting them apart from their opaque PV counterparts. Advancements in both transparent and opaque PV, such as crystalline silicon, are discussed. However, the paper prioritizes semitransparent PV's unique benefits, including harmonious integration with building design and simultaneous energy and daylight management. An exhaustive examination of current literature and developments sketches BIPV's trajectory, highlighting applications, challenges, and technological strides. The narrative extols the aesthetic, financial, and efficiency merits of BIPV, particularly the semitransparent variants' blend of functionality and design. Performance optimization of BIPV systems is scrutinized across various environments and architectural styles. This meticulous discussion seeks to clarify the status quo, emerging research avenues, and future prospects of BIPV in fostering a greener energy transition. The review compares BIPV configurations with traditional solar PV systems, charting a path for enhanced energy production, cost efficiency, and aesthetic integration, with semitransparent PV as a key player. By exploring the interplay between architectural design, energy efficiency, and urban planning, this paper aims to solidify the groundwork for future research, reinforcing the sustainability narrative in urban energy infrastructure.

Experimental study of a vertically mounted bifacial photovoltaic sunshade

BIPV (building-integrated photovoltaic) technology can convert incident solar energy directly into electricity while reducing cooling energy consumption. Using PV modules as a sunshade also prevents glare. Recently, the application of bifacial photovoltaic technology in the building sector has shown promise for achieving building energy-saving and carbon-neutral goals. In this study, we conducted an experiment to evaluate the thermal, light, and electrical performance of a vertically mounted bifacial photovoltaic sunshade (BiPVS). Over three consecutive days, the average daily power generation was 709.4 kJ for the west-oriented PV module and 636.7 kJ for the east-oriented one. The average electrical efficiencies were 15.67 % and 25.62 %. By applying BiPVS, the daily average illuminance levels were reduced by 2.48–4.64 % for the measurement point at 1.0 m distance from the window and 12.32–12.40 % for the point at 2.0 m distance. Additionally, we suggested two improvement solutions, including reserving intervals between the PV module and the window to facilitate natural convective heat dissipation and enlarging the height of the BiPVS. The results of this study demonstrate the energy-saving potential of the innovative BiPVS in low-carbon or zero-carbon building designs, and provide new ideas for the development of solar building integrated technology.

Analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of BIPV technology

As environmental problems such as the greenhouse effect and glacier melting become more and more serious, the society's awareness of environmental protection is becoming stronger and stronger, which makes the development of green buildings extremely important, and the development of many green building materials and environmental protection technologies is also increasing. more attention. In this article, BIPV (Building Integrated Photovoltaic) will be researched and its development discussed. BIPV is to reduce energy consumption through the effective use of solar energy. It is green, environmentally friendly and non-polluting. However, China started late in photovoltaics and lack of research in this area, which makes the application of BIPV technology in China still have high costs and lack of relevant building specification standards. This paper discusses the suggestions for the future development of BIPV technology, hoping to provide meager strength for the development of green buildings in China and provide direction for the future development of BIPV.

Mechanical and optical properties of amorphous silicon nitride-based films prepared by electron cyclotron resonance plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Silicon nitride (SiNx) based films have been recognized as essential dielectric films in the microelectronics and optoelectronics industry due to their desirable properties, such as high electrical insulation, excellent thermal stability, and compatibility with integrated circuit fabrication processes. They are also a potential candidate for fabricating wavelength-selective reflective coatings and surface passivation layers in building-integrated photovoltaics technologies. SiNx-based films are one of the popular choices for antireflective coatings in photovoltaics as well. Recently, SiNx and oxynitride (SiOyNx) based thin film optical filters have been explored to provide distinct color rendering to solar-charged electrical vehicles. Since solar cells have a lifespan of many years and the coating surfaces are substantial, it is essential to produce films with controlled optical and mechanical properties and maintain mechanical integrity against corrosion and wear. This study aims to design a deposition process and optimize minimal parameters for stable plasma conditions during multilayer deposition of SiNx and SiOyNx films using an electron cyclotron resonance plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition reactor with SiH4/N2/O2/Ar precursor mixtures at 120 °C. The primary goal was to investigate the influence of gas flow adjustments on the optical and mechanical properties, specifically targeting the refractive index and mechanical properties of the films. We measured the refractive index and the absorption of the films using variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. Then, we evaluated the mechanical residual stress ex situ using the wafer curvature measurement method. We have determined the elastic modulus and the hardness of the films using nanoindentation. The experimental results have shown a significant dependence of the optical and mechanical properties on the deposition parameters. To investigate the factors contributing to the intrinsic mechanical stress and to better understand SiNx film degradation mechanisms, we have studied the effect of postdeposition thermal cycling on the properties of the films. Several thermal-cycling experiments from room temperature to 400 °C were performed on different SiNx films, and the results showed an irreversible variation of the mechanical stress toward the tensile stresses caused by delamination of the films, while the refractive index remained unchanged.

Net-Zero Energy Consumption Building in China: An Overview of Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Case and Initiative toward Sustainable Future Development

Carbon-neutral strategies have become the focus of international attention, and many countries around the world have adopted building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technologies to achieve low-carbon building operation by utilizing power-generating building materials to generate energy in buildings. The purpose of this study is to review the basic status of the development of building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technologies in China, to identify and analyze the existing problems and challenges, and to propose optimization strategies and methods so as to better promote the overall development of green buildings and net-zero energy consumption buildings in China and the world. Primarily, the research area of BIPV is focused on the Chinese region through a case study approach. Subsequently, it elaborates on the theoretical basis of zero-net energy buildings and BIPV as well as the current status of the construction of the world’s low-carbon building standard system, and it summarizes the annual electricity generation of zero carbon buildings adopting BIPV in some European countries. Then, the article further quantitatively and comprehensively analyzes six successful BIPV application cases in China, and it graphically and visually evaluates and demonstrates the average annual net-zero energy performance percentage of the application cases by using the EPI evaluation and measurement tool. At the same time, based on the results of the above assessment, the challenges facing the development of BIPV in China are summarized, and specific incentives for new BIPVs are proposed to address the challenges as well as strategic approaches to optimize BIPVs that are applicable to China as well as Europe and the US. Ultimately, it is concluded that several classic BIPV building cases have achieved essentially 100% net-zero energy operation and maintenance with significant reductions in CO2 emissions and savings of tens of thousands of tonnes of coal consumption. This shows that BIPV technology is gradually developing and maturing in China, and there are great advantages and incremental development space for promoting BIPV in China in the future. The application and promotion strategy of its results in China is also applicable to other countries in the world. It is hoped that based on this experience, countries around the world will implement the “carbon neutral” strategy and zero-net energy consumption development more efficiently and with higher quality so as to realize a greener and cleaner future.

Implementation of various colors in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin-film solar cells by diffractive nanostructures

With the increasing use of building-integrated photovoltaic technology, it has become necessary for solar panels to blend in with their surroundings. Diffractive nanostructures can be used to reduce optical losses and create colorful solar cells. To make colors on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin-film solar cells, we fabricated diffractive nanostructures by using nanoscale imprinting and transfer lithography methods. And we investigated how the material types and pattern shapes of the nanostructures influence the optical properties of solar cells, such as the short-circuit current density (JSC), coordination of color appearance, and color quality. We used two types of pillars and grating nanostructures of SiO2 and TiO2 layers on CIGS thin-film solar cells to produce various colors. The SiO2 demonstrated an increase in JSC without significant loss of color quality compared to TiO2. By utilizing a hexagonally arrayed pillar pattern, colors are observed at various angles on an axis different from the incident light, unlike colors observed only at a single angle in the grating structure. The nanoimprinting lithography process allowed us to produce high-quality nanostructures on both rigid glass and flexible stainless-steel substrates.

Life Cycle Assessment of Luminescent Solar Concentrators Integrated into a Smart Window

The main goal of this paper is to assess the life cycle environmental impacts of a multifunctional smart window luminescent solar concentrator (SW–LSC) prototype through the application of the Life Cycle Assessment methodology. To the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies on the topic. The analysis followed a cradle to gate approach, considering the assembly and maintenance phase as well as the end of life, examined separately through a recycling/landfill scenario. A comparison of the impacts of LSC modules with those of some building-integrated photovoltaic technologies was carried out. Results showed that the global warming potential (100 years) for SW–LSC was 5.91 × 103 kg CO2eq and the manufacturing phase had the greatest impact (about 96%). The recycling/landfill scenario results showed the possibility to reduce impacts by an average of 45%. A dominance analysis of SW–LSC components showed that the aluminum frame was the main hotspot (about 60% contribution), followed by the light-shelf (about 19%). Batteries and motors for the shading system were the biggest contributors in the abiotic depletion potential category (36% and 30%, respectively). An alternative scenario, which involved the use of 75% recycled aluminum for the window frame, highlighted the possibility to reduce environmental impacts from 3% to 46%. Finally, the comparison results showed that the LSC modules’ impacts were on average 870% lower than that of various PV technologies when compared on the basis of m2; on the contrary, LSC modules had the highest impacts in all categories (from 200% to 1900%) when compared with other PV technologies on the basis of 1 kWh of energy generated. The results could be used for the definition of eco-design strategies for the examined device, in order to support the scaling-up process and to put “greener” systems onto the market.

Building integrated photovoltaics. Overview of barriers and opportunities

Based on the available literature, the status and prospects for further development of the building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) market were analyzed. The results of the analysis show that the high investment costs and the lack of information about installed BIPV systems and BIPV technology are a problem for the stakeholders. The BIPV technology is an interdisciplinary problem, so the cooperation of a large number of different experts is important. However, it is not yet at a satisfactory level. Another problem is the overlapping of responsibilities of HVAC installers, interior designers and fa?ade manufacturers. On the other hand, the incentives of the EU regulatory framework and beyond to use RES in both new buildings and renovation of old buildings, as well as the desire for energy independence, encourage the application of BIPV technology. An analysis of the electricity production potential of BIPV integrated into the walls and roof of the building was made for four geographical locations. A comparison of the production of electricity on the walls and on the roof of the building was carried out. The analysis shows that on the four walls of the building, where each wall has the same area as the roof of the building, approximately 2.5 times more electricity than on the roof can be generated. In the absence of available surface for installing a photovoltaic power plant on the roof, the walls represent a great potential for BIPV technology.

The social and environmental impact of building integrated photovoltaics technology

Various sustainable energy technologies are evolving around the world to reduce the carbon footprints in buildings. Building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) is one of the emerging sustainable technologies and it refers to a technology where the elements of the building envelope such as façade and roof are replaced with solar cells. However, the adoptability of BIPV technology in buildings is limited as its costs and benefits are unknown to the public. This study aims to review the BIPV literature qualitatively, to explore the beneficial-related and cost-related factors of adopting BIPV technology. A thematic analysis was undertaken among journal papers published between 2011 to 2019 that focused their investigation on integrated solar renewable systems. The identified cost and benefit-related factors were classified into environmental, health, design, and social themes. It is recommended that further research can be undertaken to explore the importance of cost and beneficial factors identified in this study quantitatively. Finally, these factors will assist in quantitatively measuring the societal impacts of BIPV technology.

Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Modules Using Additive-Manufactured Optical Pattern

This paper suggests a novel way to manufacture power-efficient building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) modules that are aesthetically acceptable for use in zero-energy buildings (ZEBs). An optical pattern is formed using additive manufacturing (AM) to maximize the number of sunrays that reach the solar cells and to hide cells beneath the pattern. The optical pattern was optimized by simulation, then selected PV modules were fabricated to ensure that they met the optimal optical pattern conditions. Increase in pattern angle and lens space yielded increase in the output power of the PV module, but reduced the aesthetic functionality. This color BIPV technology is expected to help expand the BIPV market and reduce carbon for “net zero” objectives.

Light‐Soak Stable Semitransparent and Bifacial Perovskite Solar Cells for Single‐Junction and Tandem Architectures

Semitransparent perovskite solar cells (ST‐PSCs) are very attractive due to their potential applications in single junctions for building‐integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and in tandem PV technology using low‐bandgap bottom solar cells. Despite the high efficiency achieved, the ST‐PSCs still suffer low bifaciality, which can limit their overall energy yield for application in BIPV technologies. Furthermore, the knowledge on the long‐term light‐soaking stability of the ST‐PSC from both illumination sides is required to optimize the energy production in the long term. p−i−n ST‐PSCs and semitransparent perovskite solar minimodules with comparable and high efficiencies when illuminated from either the rear or the front sides, resulting in the highest reported bifaciality factor of 97%, are demonstrated. A bifacial equivalent power output of 21.3 W m−2 is achieved for ST‐PSCs under 1 sun illumination on the front side, while using a white back reflector from the rear side with 33.5% reflected albedo. However, the side of illumination has a big impact on the light‐soak stability of the ST‐PSCs. It is observed that the ST‐PSC provides more stable output power under illumination from the rear side (n‐side) of the stack.

Constructing a Risk Assessment Framework for Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) Projects from the Perspective of Four‐Dimensional Risk

Building photovoltaic integration (BIPV) technology can effectively solve the urban energy shortage, environmental damage, and other environmental problems, which is of great significance to the sustainable development of the urban. However, the practical application of BIPV technology has been very slow, and BIPV projects have encountered numerous obstacles and risks in the process of promotion and construction. Although some researchers have conducted qualitative studies on these obstacles and risks, systematic risk assessment methods for BIPV projects are missing. This study aims to systematically develop a framework to assess the risk of BIPV projects to address this gap. First, a comprehensive risk indicator system is established using literature analysis and expert interview methods. Second, DEMATEL (decision‐making trial and evaluation laboratory) is used to calculate constant rights. Then, the risk assessment is carried out from the perspective of four‐dimensional risk including severity, possibility, urgency, and uncontrollability. The variable weight theory is used to calculate variable weight. The data fusion and risk level determination are realized by the matter‐element extension model. Finally, a case study is conducted to verify the feasibility and applicability of the BIPV project risk assessment framework. The results show that the comprehensive risk grade of the BIPV project in Qingdao is III, which belongs to medium risk. In addition, some suggestions are made based on the evaluation results. This study can enrich the methods in the field of risk assessment, and the results can provide a valuable reference for BIPV project investors and decision‐makers.

Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) in Southeast Asian Countries: Review of Effects and Challenges

Fossil fuel consumption for electricity generation in the building sector is at an all-time high in line with the country’s economic growth. This scenario will increase the global CO2 emissions and large carbon footprints, thus leading to global warming. In recent years, most of the research related to the building sector has focused on the development of new techniques to reduce buildings’ energy consumption through energy conservation, energy efficiency, and the implementation of renewable energy technologies. The introduction of photovoltaic (PV) technology has become the most prominent renewable energy (RE) that can be integrated into building components. Even though the Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) has been available for decades, but its implementation in Southeast Asian countries has not gained widespread acceptance compared to European countries and other parts of Asia. This paper aims to investigate the effects and challenges of BIPV implementation in Southeast Asian Countries (Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines), focusing on climate effects, the initial cost of PV technology, government policies, and initiatives. An in-depth literature review from past research, policies, and reports taken between 2016 to 2021 has been conducted and found that the environmental parameters directly influence the performance of BIPV systems and affect efficiency. This study pointed at Feed-in Tariff (FiT), policies and initiatives offered by the government in Southeast Asian countries are not beneficial and discourage building owners to adopt the BIPV technology or any other RE technology. Governments should revise the current policies to promote and attract more building owners to take part in the efforts to minimize CO2 emissions from the building industry.

Swiss case studies examples of solar energy compatible BIPV solutions to energy efficiency revamp of historic heritage buildings

Nowadays the proper use of energy towards ever major energy efficiency is a topical issue also for heritage buildings (hereinafter HB) which have special value both as a material testimony of our past and as a cultural asset. Greater open-mindedness to find compatible integrated solutions to improve the sustainable use of our built heritage is growing which consider, not only revamping the structural integrity, the indoor air quality and user comfort, even appraise benefits on using innovative materials or construction techniques to increase energy efficiency and exploit renewable and solar energies. Technological advances in Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV), hybrid photovoltaic thermal systems in combination with other renewable resources can be used as support for other smart measures applied to the historic building envelop, windows or the HVAC and ventilation systems. Main findings based on documented examples of best practices clearly demonstrate the maturity of these solutions and will be presented. This study in Switzerland in the framework of two Interreg projects allowed to collect documentation on case-studies with a high standard energy concept, from net zero energy (NZEB) to positive energy buildings (PEB), which demonstrate how solar BIPV technologies can be well-integrated to enhance energy efficiency in historic buildings

The Contribution of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) to the Concept of Nearly Zero-Energy Cities in Europe: Potential and Challenges Ahead

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the contributions of building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems to the notion of nearly zero-energy cities in the capitals of the European Union member states (EU), Norway, and Switzerland. Moreover, an in-depth investigation of the barriers and challenges ahead of the widespread rollout of BIPV technology is undertaken. This study investigates the scalability of the nearly zero-energy concept using BIPV technology in moving from individual buildings to entire cities. This study provide a metric for architects and urban planners that can be used to assess how much of the energy consumed by buildings in Europe could be supplied by BIPV systems when installed as building envelope materials on the outer skins of buildings. The results illustrate that by 2030, when buildings in the EU become more energy-efficient and the efficiency of BIPV systems will have improved considerably, BIPV envelope materials will be a reasonable option for building skins and will help in achieving nearly zero-energy cities. This study reveals that in the EU, taking a building skin to building net surface area ratio of 0.78 and a building skin glazing ratio of 30%, buildings could cover their electricity consumption using BIPV systems by 2030. Eighteen challenges and barriers to the extensive rollout of BIPV systems are recognised, classified, and discussed in this study in detail. The challenges are categorised into five stages, namely the decision, design, implementation, operation and maintenance, and end of life challenges.

Evaluation of in-situ thermal transmittance of innovative building integrated photovoltaic modules: Application to thermal performance assessment for green mark certification in the tropics

Green buildings with adequate renewable energy penetration are fundamental pillars of global sustainability. Moreover, pertinent to ever-increasing impacts of cooling loads, air-conditioning systems, and elevated energy consumption in the tropics, building energy performance plays a crucial rule in achieving self sustainability. In this context, the proposed work experimentally evaluates the thermal performance of five innovative building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technologies, and assesses its feasibility to be integrated as building envelopes to attain the required green mark certification benchmarks in Singapore. For which, experiments are first performed using a state-of-art indoor laboratory equipped with a calibrated Calorimeter Hot Box for thermal transmittance (U − Value) measurements. Later, distinctive to existing works, this article extends the application of U − Values to obtain the Envelope Thermal Transfer Value (ETTV) by utilizing an analytical model for sensitivity analysis. In particular, this assessment is performed to provide an accurate quantification of the thermal characteristics of the tested BIPV technologies in compliance with the prevailing green building codes. Extensive case studies considering various window to wall (WWR) ratios have also been conducted to identify the optimal values that could guarantee successful BIPV deployment with green mark compliance. Altogether, this paper reports 720 benchmark test case results accounting for five cladding, and three fenestration systems considering various WWR ratios ranging from 0.1 to 0.9. It is foreseen that the ETTV sensitivity analysis carried out in this manuscript would assist researchers, and building professionals in abreast decision making for future adoption of BIPV facades at early design stages itself.

Enhancement and validation of building integrated PV system: 3D modelling, techno-economics and environmental assessment

The incorporation of photovoltaic elements in buildings have been gaining more mileage in recent times. Building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technologies are on the rise in terms of efficiency and longevity, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.7 % since 2018. The costs of production and raw materials of BIPV have reached a level that is economically beneficial for building developers to adopt the technology. However, the lack of infrastructure as compared to traditional means of energy production has impeded the maturing of such technologies. The issue of conversion efficiency and module degradation have been addressed but not completely resolved by the scientific community. Although attractive governmental incentives such as net energy metering (NEM) and better returns of investments are shifting the tide as of late, what remains to be seen is the mass adoption of BIPV technology in residential and commercial infrastructure. This work aims to develop an optimal layout for photovoltaic panels in the university building precise 3D modelling and solar energy resource assessment. The method adopted is based on energy production capability of a 3D modelled BIPV system which will be carried out in three stages. They are i) Assessment of geographical location and meteorological data, ii) Development of 3D model and orientation analytics and (iii) Development of optimal PV layout. Three systems were considered for this study, which is the roof and two systems on the Southern Façade. The proposed rooftop BIPV design is expected to provide 49.27 % of the building's energy consumption while reducing CO2 emissions by 20155.32 tonnes throughout the lifespan of the system's deployment. This paper serves as a pioneering study on the feasibility of a BIPV system through the incorporation of building geometry for computations on incident solar irradiation. Through the reduction of electricity imported from the grid, the adoption of the BIPV system also serves as an incremental step towards achieving Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB) status for HWUM.

The Effect of Climate on the Solar Radiation Components on Building Skins and Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) Materials

The business model of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) is developing expeditiously and BIPV will soon be recognised as a building envelope material for the entire building skins, among other alternatives such as brick, wood, stone, metals, etc. This paper investigates the effect of climate on the solar radiation components on building skins and BIPV materials in the northern hemisphere. The selected cities are Stavanger in Norway, Bern in Switzerland, Rome in Italy, and Dubai in the UAE. The study showed that for all the studied climates, the average incident radiation on the entire building skins is slightly more than the average incident radiation on the east or west facades, regardless of the orientations of the building facades. Furthermore, the correlation between solar radiation components and different BIPV technologies is discussed in this paper. It is also found that when it comes to the efficiency of different BIPV cells, the impact of the climate on some of the BIPV technologies (such as DSC and OSC) is much more significant than others (such as c-Si, mc-Si and CIGS). The evidence from this study suggests that in climates with higher diffuse radiation-or with more overcast days per year-the contribution of IR radiation decreases. Therefore, the efficiency of BIPV materials that their spectral responses are dependent on the IR radiation (like Si and CIGS) in such a climate would drop down meaningfully. On the other hand, the DSC and OSC solar cells could be a good option for cloudy climates since they have more stable performance, even in such a climate. Although, their efficiency compared to other BIPV materials such as Si-based BIPV solar cells is still significantly less thus far.

A review of building integrated photovoltaic: case study of tropical climatic regions

The building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system have recently drawn interest and have demonstrated high potential to assist building owners supply both thermal and electrical loads. In this paper, the BIPV technology has been reviewed, in terms of its performance, efficiency and power generation capacity. Specifically, the applications of the BIPV in tropical climate regions have been discussed, together with its prospects and challenges. For these schemes to be implemented in a tropical climatic region, the following issues must be considered: 1) Certain studies must be done relating to electrical load demand, predicted PV output, location of the buildings and its integration and constraints associated with roof design; 2) For the highest energy production from solar PV, the solar collectors need to be with the right tilt depending on the location; 3) Design criteria such as safety, efficiency, durability, flexibility and constructive issues need to be considered; 4) The government of such countries must train electricians and carpenters on PV installations; 5) The BIPV roofing must perform same function as normal roofing materials, such as noise protection, water tightness, insulation and climate protection, and 6) As practiced around the world, these countries must establish design standards for the BIPV.