On-site Renewable Energy Generation Research Articles

Lifetime performance of semi-transparent building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) glazing systems in the tropics

Abstract The use of semi-transparent BIPV as a form of on-site renewable energy generation in energy efficient sustainable buildings is increasing. Its popularity is due to its contribution towards zero-(or even plus) energy buildings. In urban cities where the buildings have limited rooftop area but large facade areas, adopting semi-transparent BIPV windows is an alternative for conventional windows. The semi-transparent BIPV windows not only solely generate electricity but also affect the buildings' electricity usage through daylighting and heat gain/loss. In tropical climates where it is hot and humid all year round, the importance of window facade elements is even more pertinent due to high cooling load from the solar heat gains. This paper examines the life cycle environmental and economic performance of commercially available semi-transparent BIPV modules for window application under the tropical conditions of Singapore. Energy simulations, previously performed, were adopted to conduct a life cycle assessment to determine the long term performance in terms of energy and carbon emissions, as well as cost considerations. The EPBT and EROEI for the modules ranged from 0.68 to 1.98 and 11.72 to 34.49 respectively. After considering government subsidies, some modules cost lower than conventional windows, while half of the remaining modules, achieved payback periods of 1.1–13.1 years. These performance indicators were used to form a decision-making tool to assist architects and building designers in the selection of BIPV modules for windows during the early design stages.

LCE analysis of buildings – Taking the step towards Net Zero Energy Buildings

The basic concept of a Net Zero Energy Building (Net ZEB) is that on-site renewable energy generation covers the annual energy load.The main objective of this study is to analyse the increase of embodied energy compared to the decrease of the energy use related to building operation; partly by a literature review, partly by detailed analysis of eleven case studies; taking the step from a low energy building to a Net ZEB. The literature review shows that the metric of evaluation, assumed life-span, boundary conditions, age of database and the origin of database differ in different studies and influence the result of embodied energy. The relationship between embodied energy and life cycle energy use is almost linear for all cases studied herein. During the last two decades, embodied energy in new buildings has decreased slightly. However, the relative share of embodied energy related to life cycle energy use has increased. The detailed life cycle energy analysis show that taking the step from a low energy building to a Net ZEB results in a small increase of the embodied energy. However, the energy savings achieved in the annual operating energy balance clearly exceed the increase in embodied energy.

Green ergonomics and green economics: the effect of feed-in tariff schemes on user behaviours and attitudes towards energy consumption

On 1 April 2010 the UK government introduced ‘feed-in tariff’ (FIT) legislation to provide incentives for small-scale renewable energy generation, particularly by residential home-owners. This paper investigates the existing knowledge base to consider if living in a property with on-site renewable energy generation may affect user attitudes and behaviours. This knowledge is interpreted from an ergonomics/human factors perspective whilst also addressing underlying economic issues. Suggestions are made as to what effects FIT schemes may have on public attitudes and where further research efforts should be focused. A key finding is that FIT schemes are likely to result in a shift in public behaviour, particularly towards reduced energy consumption but only if initiatives address fundamental issues of green ergonomics and green economics.

Agile sustainable communities: On-site renewable energy generation

Smart and sustainable campuses demand three components. First, there is the need to have a Strategic Master Plan (SMP) for all infrastructures that include energy, transportation, water, waste and telecommunications along with the traditional dimensions of research, curricula, outreach and assessments. Secondarily, there is the array of issues pertaining to the sitting of buildings and overall facility master planning which must be addressed from the perspective of “green” energy, efficient orientation and be designed for multiple-use by the academic and local community. Thirdly, the development of sustainable buildings in one area that is compact and walkable campuses thus enable a range of transportation choices leads to reduced energy consumption. Historically, college campuses were often like towns and villages in that they are self-sustaining for family, business and recreational activities. Any sustainable smart campus is a vibrant, “experiential” applied educational model that should catalyze creative learning. More significantly, today, campuses and communities must be secure in terms of not only their own energy use and needs, but also for the resource demands of their power. Otherwise, the community(s) will never be secure economically or politically. Recognizing global warming and climate change, in the spring of 2001, the Board of Trustee (BOT) for the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) took the critical initial policy steps to turn these sustainable developments into goals. For example, the LACCD decided to have new “green” buildings to replace or renovate existing ones. The building program led to sustainable communities that included recycling, product reuse from waste as well as smart growth in terms of reduced energy use, efficiency and the use of telecommunication and wireless systems. The paper focuses primarily on the energy programs for the LACCD campuses. The paper considers the overall energy situation in California and the Southern California region, primarily Los Angeles. Then the paper looks at the state and regional energy contexts which lay the ground work and rationale why LACCD and other communities must act on their own to counteract climate change and global warming. Finally, the paper discusses how a community becomes sustainable, and hence “energy independent”. By doing so, any community can generate its own energy through the production or acquisition of its energy from renewable sources such as solar, wind or biomass among other local resources. Even more significant consequences come in terms of carbon control, lower impact on the environment and reduced global warming.

The green hydrogen paradigm shift: Energy generation for stations to vehicles

The change from a global economy dependent upon fossil fuels to renewable fuels for the hydrogen economy is occurring now. Not in 50–60 years, but the hydrogen economy exists today. This is a “paradigm shift” of such significance and so dramatic as to underlie the making of the Third Industrial Revolution. And more importantly, the Third Industrial Revolution includes three “pillars”: distributed as on-site renewable energy generation, “green” hydrogen and advanced storage devices. Each of these pillars is not an adjustment or economic cycle or business bubble. Indeed, the hydrogen economy is global with the European Union and the nation-state of California taking the lead toward sustainable energy infrastructures. This paper addresses that paradigm shift, but also the immediate economic and business development for any region or nation-state. More significantly, when the production of hydrogen is derived from renewable energy resources, not only are there societal benefits (no pollution and atmospheric impact), but also sustainable economic development and job growth. Some of the immediate evidence can be seen in California where “civic markets” are indeed working, but also with the combination of infrastructures into hybrid systems. Herein the combination of hydrogen for stationary power with transportation fuel needs is expediting the paradigm change into sustainable economic feasibility today, not in 50 years or the next century.