Design of Solar Modules for Building Façades at Educational Facilities in Korea

Photovoltaic (PV) panels are the most widely used technology for renewable energy production; however, in urban areas, their installation locations are primarily limited to building rooftops. Here, a PV panel design that allows installation on building façades, particularly in elementary school buildings in South Korea, which are widely distributed throughout the country and have a standardized building design, was developed. Elementary schools in Seoul, Gwangju, and Busan were selected, and the energy production efficiency of the PV panels based on latitude and important influencing factors, including installation position, angle, and incoming solar irradiation, were investigated. Further, each targeted elementary school building and the corresponding PV module design were visualized in three dimensions. Thus, solar irradiation was measured, and the potential energy generated by the PV modules was calculated using the Insight software coupled with the Revit software. The building façade position associated with the highest energy production efficiency for each target elementary school was selected based on the optimal PV module tilt angle, and the total energy production was 307,734 kWh∙year⁻¹. The results of this study can be applied to several other public education facilities and can be readily extended to high-rise residential buildings across Asia.