Image: Fraunhofer ISE, Mona Mühlich
The standard approach to building facade-integrated PV systems uses specialized mounting systems to combine solar panels with curtain-like, rear-ventilated facades.
To address this, Fraunhofer ISE and Fraunhofer UMSICHT have developed a facade element that integrates PV, weather protection and thermal insulation into one whole.
The institutes said their new system eliminates the need for an additional substructure. The prefabricated elements of 1 meter x 1.2 meters are available in two versions with insulation made from renewable raw materials, such as hemp fibers and mushrooms.
“Both materials are suitable for use in the facade in terms of fire behavior,” says Holger Wack, group leader in building material development at Fraunhofer UMSICHT.
The mushroom material can be produced from agricultural waste, making it very resource efficient. Both types of insulation are designed so that they can be easily separated from the facade elements to enable recycling.
This integrated construction is said to significantly reduce material use compared to conventional building-integrated solar photovoltaics (BIPV). In addition, the elements can be quickly assembled and dismantled individually if necessary, without affecting adjacent components. A test installation at the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics IBP in Holzkirchen, Germany, demonstrated assembly speeds of less than 1.5 hours per element.
The PV facade is now intensively monitored for power, durability, temperature and humidity behavior and thermal insulation performance. Researchers are also developing a digital process description to ensure proper design and installation in future construction projects.
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