Semi-transparent building integrated photovoltaic facades

Abstract

The optimisation of semi-transparent building integrated photovoltaic facades can be challenging when finding an overall balanced performance between conflicting performance criteria. This paper proposes a design optimisation method that maximises overall energy savings generated by these types of facades by simulating the combined impact of electricity generation, cooling load, and daylight autonomy. Aproof-of-concept demonstration of the proposed method is presented for a typical office facade. © 2013, The Association for Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia (CAADRIA), Hong Kong, and Center for Advanced Studies in Architecture (CASA), Department of Architecture-NUS, Singapore.