Solar Building, Heating, and Cooling: Advanced Construction Materials, Systems, and Practices

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2020) | Viewed by 16645

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Electron Science Research Institute, School of Science, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup, WA 6027, Australia
Interests: materials engineering; optical physics; solar energy; thin-film coatings; luminescent materials; building integrated photovoltaics; glazing system design; energy efficiency in buildings
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We cordially invite you to contribute to our Special Issue of Applied Sciences dedicated to building-integrated solar heating and cooling, as well as distributed on-site solar energy generation. This Special Issue aims at gathering selected papers on unconventional and emergent solar energy applications, linked to novel construction materials and practices.

The currently established and forward-looking trends in advanced construction and architecture feature an ever-increasing focus on ensuring maximised energy efficiency in buildings and utilisation of renewable energy sources. Building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and other approaches to the “solarisation” of construction sector practices are rapidly becoming mainstream directions in modern architectural design. These also include multiple existing and new solar-powered heating and cooling technologies, working in conjunction with building-integrated electricity generation and distribution technologies. Continued progress in the aforementioned areas will play a key role globally in several emergent economy sectors, such as smart cities development, the Internet of Things, and widespread distributed electricity generation networks.

We encourage researchers to share their original manuscripts and data in the fields of building-integrated solar energy systems. Topics of primary interest include but are not limited to the following:

  • Solar heating and cooling;
  • Building-integrated solar photovoltaics;
  • Unconventional photovoltaics;
  • Distributed energy generation in buildings
  • Net zero energy construction;
  • Integration of energy-efficient HVAC systems with on-site renewable generation;
  • Solar windows and advanced glazings;
  • Case studies.

Dr. Mikhail Vasiliev
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • next-generation solar-enabled technologies
  • building integration
  • unconventional solar
  • HVAC efficiency
  • energy generation at the point of use
  • distributed generation

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 18653 KiB  
Article
Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings
by Guglielmina Mutani, Cristina Azzolino, Maurizio Macrì and Stefania Mancuso
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(8), 2858; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10082858 - 20 Apr 2020
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 5898
Abstract
Some straw buildings, which combine eco-sustainability with versatility, low cost, and fast construction times, have recently been built in Northern Italy. In this work, the technologies used to build straw houses are presented, and the characteristics of the raw materials, the straw bales, [...] Read more.
Some straw buildings, which combine eco-sustainability with versatility, low cost, and fast construction times, have recently been built in Northern Italy. In this work, the technologies used to build straw houses are presented, and the characteristics of the raw materials, the straw bales, and the construction techniques are dealt with. Two straw buildings, which have different characteristics and types of application, are analyzed. The first building is a residential, nearly zero-energy building, which was built in Saluggia (Vercelli) in 2012. This house is presently inhabited by a family and is heated with a wood stove. The second building was built in 2014 in Verres (Aosta) and is a pre-assembled demonstration prototype used for teaching purposes. The thermal performance of the straw envelopes was evaluated during the heating season by measuring the thermal conductance of the straw walls through two experimental campaigns. Straw bale walls offer good insulating performance, as well as high thermal inertia, and can be used in green buildings since straw is derived from agricultural waste, does not require an industrial process, and is degradable. Finally, these characteristics of straw can be combined with its low cost. Local economic development in this field may be possible. Full article
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18 pages, 5251 KiB  
Article
Initial Field Testing Results from Building-Integrated Solar Energy Harvesting Windows Installation in Perth, Australia
by Mikhail Vasiliev, Mohammad Nur-E-Alam and Kamal Alameh
Appl. Sci. 2019, 9(19), 4002; https://doi.org/10.3390/app9194002 - 24 Sep 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 10285
Abstract
We report on the field testing datasets and performance evaluation results obtained from a commercial property-based visually-clear solar window installation site in Perth-Australia. This installation was fitted into a refurbished shopping center entrance porch and showcases the potential of glass curtain wall-based solar [...] Read more.
We report on the field testing datasets and performance evaluation results obtained from a commercial property-based visually-clear solar window installation site in Perth-Australia. This installation was fitted into a refurbished shopping center entrance porch and showcases the potential of glass curtain wall-based solar energy harvesting in built environments. In particular, we focus on photovoltaic (PV) performance characteristics such as the electric power output, specific yield, day-to-day consistency of peak output power, and the amounts of energy generated and stored daily. The dependencies of the generated electric power and stored energy on multiple environmental and geometric parameters are also studied. An overview of the current and future application potential of high-transparency, visually-clear solar window-based curtain wall installations suitable for practical building integration is provided. Full article
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