The HiLo Integrated Floor: Reviewing the Relation Between Structural and Environmental Systems

ISSN:2475-143XISSN:2475-144

Stochastic Solar Irradiance from Deep Generative Networks and their Application in BIPV Design

Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) is a promising technology to decarbonize urban energy systems via harnessing solar energy available on building envelopes. Nevertheless, handling the trade-off between effort, speed and spatial-temporal resolution for 3D BIPV solar potential evaluation in a complex urban context has always been a challenging task. Existing physics-based solar simulation engines require significant manual modelling effort and computing time to obtain high-resolution deterministic results. Yet, solar irradiation is highly intermittent and representing its inherent uncertainty may be required for designing robust energy systems. Targeting these drawbacks, this paper proposes a data-driven model based on Deep Generative Networks (DGN) to efficiently generate high-fidelity stochastic ensembles of annual hourly urban solar irradiance time-series data with uncompromised spatial-temporal resolution at the urban scale. It requires only easily accessible data inputs, i.e., simple fisheye images as categorical masks, such as captured from Level of Details (LOD) 1 urban geometry models. Our validations exemplify the high fidelity of the generated solar time series when compared to the physics-based simulator. To demonstrate the model’s relevance for urban energy design, we apply it to the resilient design of a district multi-energy system (MES) with several hundreds of BIPV surfaces. Furthermore, we showcase the models’ potential for generative design by parametrically altering the urban environment and producing corresponding irradiation time-series in real-time.ISSN:1755-1315ISSN:1755-130

The Repository for Integrated Solar Energy in the Built Environment

This repository serves as a collection point for buildings and infrastructure have integrated solar energy technologies, most prominently building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). The repository can be explored through a map tool with basic filtering functionality. Along with the map explorer we have included a set of plots to explore the projects through their performance and inherent characteristics (i.e. type of project, annual yield, system efficiency, etc.). As the repository explorer is expanded more projects will be included as well as resources for various audiences, such as design booklets for BIPV or reference materials for engineering standards

Projected energy savings of a 3D printed selective heat transfer facade

Dynamic building facades offer untapped potential for reducing building energy consumption and emissions. However, there is currently a lack of suitable technologies for bespoke components for new and retrofit applications. In previous work, we developed a 3D printed polymer facade component that selectively acts as a thermal conductor or insulator depending on outdoor and indoor conditions. Our experiments demonstrate that the element can achieve effective thermal conductivities as low as 0.03 W/mK and as high as 28 W/mK in insulating and conducting modes. In this work, we assess the potential impact of this technology on reducing heating and cooling energy demand. We conducted a parametric analysis of ten physical characteristics of the facade component. Then, we simulated the façade component employed in 270 building typologies and climate combinations. Our results indicate annual energy reduction of up to 80 kWh/m2 (heating) and 15 kWh/m2 (cooling) for building typologyclimate combinations that can benefit the most from this technology.ISSN:1742-6588ISSN:1742-659

Assessing the environmental impact of future urban developments at neighbourhood scale

This paper presents the results of a two-year trans-disciplinary research project investigating opportunities and limitations of the Swiss 2000-Watt/1-ton CO2 society vision for the transformation of industrial sites into liveable neighbourhoods. By involving local stakeholders we elaborated four plausible scenarios for the transformation of an industrial area in the city of Zug, Switzerland. Based on life cycle analysis methods and urban energy modelling, we estimated the carbon and energy footprint of every scenario due to construction, operation, retrofit and dismantling of buildings, production processes and logistics, commuting, and business flights. The results of our research present a comprehensive description of focal points of environmental impact in future forms of urban development and a description of the role of industry in a transition towards more sustainable urban environments. These are topics of high interest for decision makers involved in initiatives for the sustainable transformation of neighbourhoods such as the 2000-Watt Areale or alike

Parametric design of an additively manufactured building façade for bespoke response to solar radiation

The building construction industry is adapting Additive Manufacturing (AM) and robotic fabrication techniques to, among other efficiency and cost benefits, reduce the lifecycle Green House Gas (GHG) emissions of new buildings. This research aims to fabricate a low-GHG emission façade by encoding environmental performance using a combination of material selection, AM techniques, and bespoke geometry. This paper presents the design methodology, specifically the response to solar radiation (i.e. shading and daylight transmission). The key contribution of this publication is establishing the digital fabrication process of AM facades: beginning with performative parametric design, using empirical Bi-directional Scattering Distribution Function (BSDF) data of AM thermoplastic elements for daylight simulation to assess performance, and finally optimising the topology for a specific context (location and orientation).ISSN:1742-6588ISSN:1742-659

Tuning the Solar Performance of Building Facades through Polymer 3D Printing: Towards Bespoke Thermo-optical Properties

Façades are the primary interface controlling the flow of solar energy in buildings and affecting their energy balance and environmental impact. Recently, large-scale 3D printing(3DP) of translucent polymers has been explored as a technique for fabricating façade components with bespoke properties. Transmissivity is essential for facades, as the response to solar radiation is crucial to obtaining comfort and significantly affects electricity and cooling demands. However, it is still unclear how 3DP parameters affect the optical properties of translucent polymers. This study establishes an experimental procedure to relate the optical properties of PETG components to design and 3DP parameters. We observe that printing parameters significantly affect layer deposition, which governs internal light scattering in the layers and overall light transmission. Moreover, the layer resolution determines angle-dependent properties. We show that printing parameters can be tuned to obtain tailored properties, from high normal transparency (~90%) to translucency (~60%) and with a range of haze levels (~55- 97%). These findings present an opportunity for large-scale 3DP of bespoke façades, which can selectively admit or block solar radiation and provide uniform daylighting of a space. In the context of the building sector decarbonisation, such components hold great potential for reducing emissions while ensuring occupant comfort