BIPV/PV
Remedial
Temperature Control
When sunlight is transmitted onto the surface of the PV, electrons absorb the energy which later converts them into electricity for our consumption. Easy as it may sound, it is not possible for all the sunlight transmitted can be converted into electrical energy. This is due to the different frequency of light shown in Figure 12. As such, the material of PV plays a major role in ensuring the efficiency. The conception of bright sunlight will produce more energy is totally untrue.
A bright light with low frequency will not be able to produce any electrical energy while a dim light with high frequency will still be able to produce energy33. This is further substantiated with the case of successful BIPV implementation in Germany where the weather conditions are usually very cloudy and there is little sunlight, but still able to generate enough solar energy for consumption34.
Due to lack of proper maintenance, PV suffers from constant high temperature from the solar heat. The increase in surface temperature of the PV reduces the efficiency rate and thus, affects the overall performance of the BIPV. According to the interview conducted with SERIS, the typical surface temperature for PV is approximately 50-60°C. The high surface temperature will reduce the PV efficiency by 1-2% from the already low-efficiency rate. This is rather a significant issue and something that we can do to mitigate it.
One of the ideas to reduce the surface temperature of the BIPV is to integrate a layer of gas into the façade glass glazing. This layer of gas would only absorb lower frequency light (i.e. infrared) and allows higher frequency light to pass through. Thus, this allows for lower surface temperature as the lower frequency light, which will be converted to heat, would not able to penetrate through the PV panels. Another idea would implement a glazing material that can reflect a significant amount of UV rays like gold foil35. However, this might compromise the façade aesthetics. We believe that with more research and development (R&D), we would be able to discover a suitable material that fits into our criteria.