SMART BIPV GLASS-GLASS CURTAIN WALL BASED ON SPHELAR TECHNOLOGY

摘要

In 2008, Japanese KYOSEMI Corporation and Spanish Technology Corporation TECNALIA signed a Collaboration Agreement for the development of a BIPV curtain wall based on KYOSEMI's Sphelar technology and TECNALIA's developed concept of distributed architecture. In this paper, the main aspects of the product design and the validation plan, as well as the first tests results carried out by TECNALIA are presented. They show that the proposed BIPV solution presents higher efficiency and lower cell-occupated area than other BIPV products already available in the market, for the same power. Additionally, new features are achieved: unique aesthetical design and indoor lighting, possibility of different patterns and drawings without compromising efficiency, variable ranges of cell occupation, continuous monitoring of PV module performance, more efficient light capture by means of proper selection of glass and selective glass coatings, etc. First results show that the proposed combination is a really attractive option to be taken into account for building applications as solar power-generating glazing systems. The first prototypes will be concluded in October and ready to be installed in KUBIK, the experimental building that TECNALIA has designed and built to serve as a testing laboratory on the performance of energy efficient products in buildings.