Melbourne’s buildings could be close to self-sustaining through fully integrated solar
Melbourne’s buildings could be close to self-sustaining through fully integrated solar
Full article issued by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Exciton Science.
ARC-supported modelling has shown that buildings in the City of Melbourne could provide 74% of their own electricity needs if solar technology is fully integrated into roofs, walls and windows.
The research, led by members of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science based at Monash University, together with collaborators at the University of Lisbon, is the first of its kind anywhere in the world to model the viability and impact of window-integrated photovoltaics, alongside other solar technologies, at a city scale.
The results indicate that comprehensive adoption of existing rooftop PV technology alone throughout the city could radically transform Melbourne’s carbon footprint, significantly reducing its reliance on grid electricity generated by burning fossil fuels.
Further gains could be made through the widespread deployment of emerging, highly efficient ‘solar windows’ and photovoltaic technology integrated in building facades.
The researchers hope that by using the modelling they have developed, policy makers, energy providers, construction companies and building owners will be able to optimise the PV potential of both new and existing structures.
'By using photovoltaic technology commercially available today and incorporating the expected advances in wall and window-integrated solar technology over the next ten years, we could potentially see our CBD on its way to net zero in the coming decades,' said lead researcher Professor Jacek Jasieniak.
Image: Wikimedia commons (CC BY 2.0).
