T5a Technology Exploration

Solar Systems Past, Present and Future

Daniel Baines (16/2/103)

RIBA Office-based Diploma in Architecture
April 2016

References .................................................................................................................................28

Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................3
Chosen area of study: solar ........................................................................................................4
Examples of solar energy integration into building design .......................................................5
Solar heating - Thermosiphon .............................................................................................5
Stack ventilation / solar updraft ...........................................................................................6
Thermal mass .......................................................................................................................6
Holistic Passive solar control ...............................................................................................7
Why PV? .......................................................................................................................................9
Solar batteries ..........................................................................................................................9
Lead acid ..............................................................................................................................9
Tesla Powerwall....................................................................................................................9
Why not (just) PV? .....................................................................................................................10
Energy Usage ............................................................................................................................11
Domestic ................................................................................................................................11
Timeline of photovoltaic / photoelectric development .............................................................13
Current state of the art ...............................................................................................................16
Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) ..............................................................................16
The cutting edge........................................................................................................................17
Thin film photovoltaics ...........................................................................................................17
Dye-sensitised / perovskite cells ...........................................................................................17
Next step for technology ...........................................................................................................19
MEPV ......................................................................................................................................19
Next step for society / policy .....................................................................................................20
Feed-in tariffs / export tariff........................................................................................................21
Conclusion / reflection...............................................................................................................22
Ideas for development...............................................................................................................25

Introduction
Since the birth of civilisation, we have relied on the Sun for heat and light. It has been
worshipped, formed the centre of civilisations and has essentially given birth of every living thing
there has ever been on the planet.
Early examples of architectural design pay appropriate respect to this, incorporating various
methods of harnessing the Sun into their fabric. However, many current buildings are the inverse
of this. Granted, renewable technology is rising in popularity, but often tends to be tacked on
the cladding or the roof, sitting incongruously separate from the rest of the buildings elements.
The aim of this report is to look at how solar energy is used in buildings today, before focussing
in on photovoltaic energy: its principles, how they are currently being applied and how the
technology is developing for the near and not-so-near future.
We can then look at the application to future architecture. Will there be an end to bolting these
elements on at the end, based on how much budget is left? Will this mean we can create
buildings that are inherently photovoltaic?

Image courtesy of BIPVNO (bipvno.no)

Chosen area of study: solar

Image courtesy of https://astralvisions.files.wordpress.com

How much is available?

Of the renewable energy sources available to us: solar energy is far and away the one with the
most potential for significantly contributing to our energy loads. There are several sources of
information that claim to provide this data. The parameters within which they are calculated
vary, but the global result is similar in most cases. The amount of solar energy that hits the
Earths surface is more than we use: by approximately a factor of 10,000. That is to say, that
more solar energy hits the surface of the Earth in an hour than we use in fossil fuels, nuclear
energy and all other renewable resources combined in a year!(Tsao, 2006).

This

overwhelming figure does not take into account energy lost in the harvesting process, or the
percentage of the Earths surface that is accessible in this capacity. Nevertheless, if harnessing
1% of that energy gives us 100 times more than we need, it stands to reason that solar energy
is as viable a source of renewable energy as any.

Examples of solar energy integration into building

design
Solar heating - Thermosiphon
Common in countries such as Spain, this consists of a tank (usually with a mirrored finish) on
the roof of a building.

This is the simplest way to heat the water used in the property.

Development of this simple principle resulted in the early solar heating panels, which have a
coil exposed to the sun, which then in turn runs through water which is consequently heated by
said coil. More modern methods combine a flat panel solar collector that circulates a solar fluid
- in a heat-exchanging capacity - with a tank heating cold water and circulates the warmed water
back into the system.
An alternative to the flat panel solar collector is the evacuated tube construction. This involves
a tube normally made from glass, containing an inner tube made from copper. The void
between these two pipes is a sealed vacuum, which allows the transfer of solar radiation, while
minimising heat loss by conduction. The inner tube contains a solar fluid. This can be water,
but is typically an antifreeze mix, such as propylene glycol. As this fluid is heated, the resultant

Thermosiphon with flat plate collector

image courtesy of www.solarpoweringyourhome.com

vapour rises towards the top of the pipe, where it is transferred to a heat exchanger where the
heat will be transferred to a potable hot water supply.

Flat plate alternative - evacuated tube diagrams (by author)

Stack ventilation / solar updraft

A glazed volume collects solar radiation, heating the air within. The difference in temperature /
pressure between this warm air and the cooler air inside the building creates a convectional
current, which draws the waste air up through the building and typically out through a high-level
aperture or chimney. This effect is added to by the blowing of wind currents across the top of
the stack.
Beyond building ventilation, this technology has also been employed in Solar Updraft Towers,
albeit with limited success on account of stability / efficiency.

Thermal mass
Buildings with material of high thermal mass steadily absorb solar radiation and conversely
release this heat slowly, which can be useful in countries with a high diurnal temperature range
i.e. high temperatures in the daytime and cool at night.

Stack ventilation diagram (by author)

Holistic Passive solar control

One of the more impactful uses of passive solar power this is that at the former St Georges
Secondary School in Wallasey, Cheshire. Designed in 1961 by Council architect Emslie Morgan,
the design was revolutionary. Its entire wall of double-skinned glazing admitted solar energy
year-round; the buildings design in section was optimised to both capture the (hard-to-comeby) summer sun without overheating and maximise capture of the (even harder-to-come-by!)
winter solar radiation. This was facilitated by floor slabs and internal walls of heavy thermal
mass to absorb the heat and slowly dissipate it throughout the day and evening. In addition,
the inner skin of the glazed wall was furnished with removable, reversible panels. Glossy white
on one side and matt black on the reverse, these panels were flipped round to reflect excess

St Georges School, Wallasey, Cheshire

insolation in summer and absorb the maximum in winter respectively.

Image credit, The Architecture of the Well-Tempered Environment, Reyner Banham

St Georges School, Wallasey: section diagram showing heat conservation methods

1. Insulated roof structure
2. Light fittings
3. Double skin solar wall
4. Adjustable ventilating windows
5. Ventilating windows at rear of classroom
Image credit, The Architecture of the Well-Tempered Environment, Reyner Banham

The above examples are not without their disadvantages. According to an article by Martin
Spring in Building Magazine (2007), the fully-glazed wall was a source of considerable glare for
teaching staff using more modern whiteboards. The original scheme relied on residual heat
emitted by tungsten bulbs and the building users themselves to ensure that heat did not have
to be supplied otherwise (according to a local newspaper article published around the time the
headmaster did not need to buy a single bag of coal for over a year!). However, the reduction
in numbers of building users coupled with the introduction of more energy-efficient lighting
fixtures has reduced the amount of heat the building can passively source, meaning the
heating system originally installed as a backup / precaution has come into more use. The floors
were originally exposed concrete slabs; the refurbishment involved topping them with carpet,
all but removing the functionality of the floor slab as a slow-release thermal mass.
These factors help to demonstrate that even on an exemplar project such as this, the passing
of time has exposed the lack of versatility of the energy harvested. The low ecological impact
of this building was revolutionary at the time and is still impressive. The question that arises,
however, is how can this model be adjusted to give similar impact on the buildings of today and
tomorrow? With todays and tomorrows updated demands?

St Georges School Annexe, present day

Image courtesy of hevac-heritage.org

Why PV?

The first Powerwall has been sold in the UK recently; with enough systems such as these in
place, less pressure will be put on the National Grid as more people begin to move towards

Photovoltaic technologies create electricity using photons from sunlight or other light sources

subsistence / self-sufficient.

- to stimulate flow of electrons, hence create electric current. This is a versatile form of energy
that could be used by the consumer in a number of ways. In this sense, photovoltaic energy
(PV) has a distinct advantage over direct solar heating, as the possibility is created for us to
have energy from the Sun not just for heating, but for indoor lighting, high temperature water
heating, or whatever the devices we plug into it can do. Convenience is also a factor: heat
energy can be stored in elements with thermal mass (e.g. storage heaters), but this works best
with households on time-dependent tariffs, such as Economy 7. If one lives in an area where
solar collection is enough to heat a building, it is likely that the dwelling will not be in desperate
need of a lot of heating (depending on the diurnal temperature range). Electrical charge,
however, can be stored for longer in solar batteries as covered in the next section - without
diminishing as much as stored heat. Again, this stored electricity can be used in a number of
ways of the building users choosing.

Solar batteries
The type of battery used in solar energy installations is typically deep-discharge. Deepdischarge batteries give out a low current for a longer period of time. Batteries are rated in Ah
(amp-hours). To get this rating, one simply multiplies the level of current by the time (in hours)
that the current can be generated for. Lower currents therefore mean the batteries can work for
longer periods; an ideal arrangement for use in the home, for example.
Lead acid
lead-acid batteries are the predominant type of battery used in this field. There are
various types (flooded-cell, valve-regulated, absorbent glass mat, gel cell), but they all use lead,
which is, as previously broached on site, damaging to the environment. In light of this limitation,
the Tesla Powerwall has been invented.
Tesla Powerwall
Produced by Tesla Motors, the Powerwall enables homeowners to store PV energy (or
alternatively, build up energy when rates are lower, in a similar fashion to storage heaters on an
Economy 7 tariff). The energy can then be used at the consumers discretion; for example,
lighting and heating a space after the Sun has set for the day. The Powerwall also has the ability
to store energy for release in the event of a power outage.

image courtesy of teslamotors.com

Why not (just) PV?

We can use the energy generated by PV in practically any way we choose. However, just as
important as asking
can we do this?
is asking
should we do this?
The nature of any energy harvesting process is such that it will never be 100% efficient. If energy
is lost converting solar radiation into electricity, then more is lost converting that electrical energy
back into heat, the system is globally less efficient than it could be, due to this double
handling. In situations where reserve energy is desperately required (e.g. winter months
without long periods of solar radiation). As much as it is accepted that PV technology forms a

Areas in which a single building can maximise energy from the Sun, not just photovoltaic cells (sketch
by author)

huge part of this debate today, it should be kept in mind that PV panelling is not a panacea for
the worlds energy problems. Multi-layered systems of energy harvesting are essential in the
future of sustainable building design and will continue to be such in the future.
The observation being made in this report is that PV often appears as an afterthought, being
stuck onto the outside of a building. Even when included in a project from the outset, there is
often the scope for such renewables to be value-engineered out of the scheme by the parties
paying for the build front-end, as they themselves will not see the direct benefits of having such
a system. Deeper integration of the tech into a project could alleviate this somewhat; harnessing
of the Suns energy is utterly intrinsic to a building such as St Georges Secondary School in
Wallasey: one would not have been able to rip it out at the eleventh hour. Modification of PV
technology to hard-wire it into a buildings fabric would give the added benefit of energy
versatility to the examples already given.
The following pages will attempt to document what can already be achieved with PV, what the
cutting edge of the tech is offering, what lies just around the corner and what the next step on
from here could be.

Example of impromptu use of sunlight, dwelling in Worthing, with evacuated tube solar collectors
and laundry being dried on the roof! (Image taken by author)

Energy Usage
Domestic
The amount of electrical energy generated in the UK in 2015 totalled 337.7 TWh. Of this amount,
24.9% was attributed to renewables. This is already above the 2020 target of 15%, but at
7.6TWh, PV solar is responsible for less than 2.5% of the overall figure.
However, to analyse this data another way makes for more positive reading in the field. The
amount of PV contribution to the total electricity load in the UK was 86.6% up on the 2014 figure.
Despite the amendments to the feed-in tariffs discussed in more detail later - falling PV module
production prices suggest that this increase can be sustained until the 2020 date. At this rate,
it could be optimistically argued that PV has the potential to provide more than 169 TWh of
electricity by 2020: more than half the current amount required.
As well as the amount that can be produced, the amount we will actually need is another key
factor. Energy production in the UK has been steadily decreasing since 2005, dropping in 2015
to the equivalent of 197.4 million tonnes of oil1. With tightening on building regulations (Part L)

Total UK energy consumption for 2015 (data courtesy of DECC)

in 2010 and 2013, the new buildings commenced after these dates require less fuel to heat them
to a comfortable level. In addition to the suggestion that significantly more energy can be
generated from renewable sources in the future, it may also be proffered that less energy will
be required for use in heating and powering buildings.
The available statistics for household electricity usage show significant increase on account of
the advent of home computing (the earlier figures on household energy usage circa 1970 do
not even acknowledge home computing as an outlet, as there was very little scope for it relative
to the whole population). Once established the figure rose year on year, with a spike around
the millennium mark; the time around which the Internet found its way into the majority of homes.
The rise in popularity around this time in which the average number of computers in a single
household increased saw electricity consumption rise. The tables have turned more recently,
however. The increased uptake of smaller, less power-hungry mobile devices, with 54% of UK
households owning a tablet computer in 2015 and 66% of UK adults owning a smartphone
(Ofcom, 2015); has seen the energy requirement for home computing fall by approximately 5%

1 tonne of oil equivalent to 11630 kWh

Breakdown of renewable electricity generation, year on year, to 2015 (data courtesy of DECC)

over the last year for the first time (according to DECC data). This decrease is likely to continue,
given the ever-improving efficiency of these devices.
The other domestic use which sees high demand on electrical energy is in kitchen appliances.
Again, significant leaps in the energy efficiency of many of these devices heat-pumping
refrigerators coming with A+++ energy ratings, for example will see the average household
use less electricity on the whole, as older and less efficient appliances expire and are replaced.
All this leads to a tipping point where PV solar goes from being more than an environmentallyconscious choice to a starting point for every dwellings energy strategy.

Timeline of photovoltaic / photoelectric development

1839 Alexandre Edmond Becquerel (father of Nobel Prize winner
Antoine Henri Becquerel) discovers the Photoelectric (Photovoltaic)
effect; the effect of light energy passed over an electrode creating
electricity. Silver chloride was placed in an acidic solution and light
passed over it, whilst connected to platinum electrodes the first
photovoltaic cell. Voltage and current were generated. This is
Alexandre Edmond Becquerel,
image
courtesy
of
www.virtualmuseum.ca

essentially the principle on which solar electric power henceforth

has been based. For this reason, the photovoltaic effect is also
referred to as the Becquerel Effect.

1873: Engineer Willoughby Smith discovers the photoconductivity of Selenium, whilst

experimenting with different materials for underwater telegraph cabling.
1877: Adams and Day observe the effect in Selenium and consequently publish a paper on the
Selenium cell. This is significant as the first proven solid-state example of the photovoltaic effect.
(1878): Mouchot exhibits at the Universal Exhibition in Paris. His most noted work here is the

First demonstration of photovoltaic effect, as described by A-E.

creation of ice using solar heat. Prior to this, Mouchot had also worked on the solar engine,

Becquerel

creating mechanical steam power using solar energy.

This discovery leads on to Charles Fritts producing the first selenium solar cells in 1883. Unable
to compete with Edisons fossil-fuel-fired power plants (could only manage 1% efficiency).

Selenium core within

glass tube

Electrode
inserted
through bungs to tube

1905: Albert Einstein publishes a paper on the photoelectric effect.

1916: Jan Czochralski, the Polish physicist, pioneers the process of crystal growth, still used in
the production of solar cells (and semiconductors) today (accidentally dipped his pen into
molten ink instead of ink and crystallised the nib!) This method was used until relatively recently
as the predominant method of producing PV cells.
1940: Russell Shoemaker Ohl at Bell Labs patents the solar cell. This followed work with
semiconductors that, like with many scientific breakthroughs, arose through another fortunate
accident. This time it was a crack in a silicon semiconductor forming the gap over which light
would carry electrons and generate current, known as the p-n junction.

Adams and Day photovoltaic experiment on selenium, redrawn based on Adams and Day description
/ information on pveducation.org

24/04/1954 the 6% efficient solar cell is announced and the following day the New York Times
runs a related article on their front page:
Every hour the sun pours upon the earth the energy-equivalent of twenty-one
billion tons of coal. The state of New Mexico alone can supply from solar radiation
over ten trillion horse-power-hours a year. The land of the temperate and tropical
zones is flooded with more energy from the sun than mankind has utilized in the
form of fuel, falling water, uranium and muscle since it came out of the trees a
million years ago.
Abstract, Power from the Sun, New York Times, 25/04/1954

04/10/1955 Photovoltaic cell erected and tested in New Jersey.

Designed by Gerald Pearson, Calvin Fuller and Daryl Chapin (right),
this is claimed to be the first practical photovoltaic cell. The work
was carried out by Bell Laboratories, who would go on to design the
PV cells that power NASAs first permanent satellite Vanguard 1 -in

Synchronar by Riehl; the worlds first solar-powered

wristwatch

1958. (image courtesy of www.solarcellcentral.com)

Image courtesy of forums.watchuseek.com

1967 innovations in solar powered space technology continue, with Soyuz becoming the first
solar-powered spacecraft to carry humans.
1968 the first solar-powered consumer gadget is launched: Riehls solar-powered wristwatch.
1977 Governments across the world embrace fully the
pursuit of increased solar energy use. The US lead the way
in this, founding the Solar Energy Research Institute. In an
almost-certainly related move, President Carter has solar
panels installed on the roof of the White House (right,
image courtesy of
1986 President Reagan inexplicably has the PV panels on the White House roof removed.
The explanation given is that renovation work was carried out on the roof and the panels could
not be feasibly replaced.
1999 sees a 500% increase in generation of solar power over the last 15 years, with level
hitting 1000 MW.

The Soyuz I, the first manned spacecraft to be solar-powered.

Image courtesy of thisdayinaviation.com

2005-2007 several solar power initiatives are established:

-

then-Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger proposes Solar Power Initiative that

will see 1,000,000 peoples homes having solar power as a source.

Vatican launches a solar power plan: a comprehensive energy project that will pay for
itself in a few years.

Google which if it were a country would be in the top 70 based upon GDP) launches a
major solar panel project, connected to their existing Google Maps infrastructure to help
users calculate a suitable solar energy plan.

2010 Barack Obama reinstates solar panels on the roof of the White House. Independent
consultants calculate that if President Reagan had not had the PV array on the roof of the
White House removed in 1986, it would have generated enough energy to power to run a
typical petrol engine passenger vehicle for almost 500,000 miles.
2011 Germanys standpoint on solar altered dramatically in the wake of the Fukushima
earthquake and subsequent nuclear meltdown. They eschewed their nuclear program in
favour of renewables, predominantly photovoltaics.
2012 the Fukushima disaster appears to represent a tipping point in the importance of
renewable energy. With Germany now generating 22 gigawatts per hour on sunny days
(enough to supply half the country), the UK government also follow suit in embracing solar,
declaring that 4 million homes will be using energy from the Sun by 2020.
2013: Spain as a nation is now generating as much as 50% of its energy from solar, year on
year.
2014: A research team at the University of New South Wales testing commercial panels
break the world record for solar panel efficiency, managing to gather energy from the Suns
rays with more than 40% efficiency.

Scene of 2011 Fukushima meltdown

image courtesy of citypictures.org

Current state of the art

At the time of writing, the prevalent photovoltaic technology being used is crystalline silicon (cSi) panels. Based on the crystal growth techniques pioneered by Jan Czochralski in 1916, the
formula employed in fabrication of these elements has been used since the first commerciallyavailable PV panels in the 1950s and has changed very little. c-Si panels dominate the current
global stock of PV, representing 90% of the worldwide market share (solarcellcentral.com,
2014). There is approximately 180GW of PV solar equipment installed across the world at the
time of writing; it is believed that this amount could as much as triple to 540GW by 2020 (Solar
Power Europe, 2015).
Uptake of the technology has been solid for the past decade. According to Laura Wisman
writing for the Union of Concerned Scientists blog the number of homes that have invested in
solar installations has increased more than tenfold in the USA. Figures released by Solar Power

Typical building-applied photovoltaic (BAPV) system

Image courtesy of businessworldghana.com

Europe indicate that over 50GW of PV solar installations were completed in 2015, a rise on the
40 GW installed in 2014 and again on 37GW installed in 2013.

Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV)

As opposed to building-applied photovoltaics, BIPV systems involve modification of building
elements to have photovoltaic qualities. This predominantly exists in the roofing industry, with
solarcentury and Imerys being among companies that offer roof tile integrated systems that
complement the buildings overall appearance. The cells are formed from polycrystalline silicon
wafers, similar to the type used on satellites. Kalzip also offer standing seam systems that have
photovoltaic cells included at the time of construction. The obvious benefit is a completed
scheme whose overall design is not compromised by the addition of these receptors.

photovoltaic roof tiles (BIPV) example

Image courtesy of Imerys Roof Tiles marketing material

The cutting edge

Thin film photovoltaics
As the name suggests, thin film technology involves the coating of a substrate with thin layers
of photovoltaic material. The fact that this substrate need not necessarily be metal (glass and
various plastics work in this instance) the technology opens up the possibility of applying the
material to flexible bases. In addition, the film will typically have a more outwardly homogenous
appearance, making aesthetic application in architecture much more appealing. The materials
currently forming the basis for the TFPV market are amorphous silicon (a-Si), cadmium telluride

Highly flexible thin-film solar cells, as exhibited at

this years MaterialXperience expo by Solliance
(image courtesy of materia.nl)

comparison of capital expenditure on silicon vs thin film solar (image

courtesy of renewableenergyworld.com)

(CdTe), Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) and organic photovoltaic cells (OPC).
The major advantage of TFPV is cost: the cells themselves being so thin naturally leads to
greatly-reduced material costs.

Furthermore, the use of a glass substrate means the

manufacture process can piggy back on the production infrastructure of flat panel displays,
which has seen a fifty-fold increase in throughput over the last 25-30 years (Mattson, 2014).
Unfortunately, all this has not been enough to see TFPV compete with c-Si for market share; the
efficacy with the recent drop in price of crystalline silicon systems this means a significant cost
saving.

Dye-sensitised / perovskite cells

Dye-sensitised cells (DSCs) are essentially a form of biomimetics, adopting the way that
chloroplasts in plant cells convert sunlight into chemical energy. Light is cast onto a titanium
dioxide paste through a transparent electrode. This TiO2 layer is surrounded by an electrolyte
and has been sensitised with a dye component which makes the TiO2 responsive to the
photons. As the lights photons energise the outer electrons of this dye-sensitised compound,
they are released and drawn towards a conductive cathode, typically made of crystalline
titanium (the electron holes left in the dye-sensitised compound are filled with mediator
electrons in the electrolyte. When this circuit is closed, the cyclic flow of electrons generates
the electric current sought after.
The advantages of this type of cell include production cost. The cells themselves are thinner
than typical silicon cells and can be print-rolled out, making a saving on material cost. In
addition, with the electrodes and the electrolyte all able to be transparent, the ability to have
transparent solar cells becomes an immediate advantage in the construction industry. A

Dye-sensitised solar cells, as used in the glazed faade of the Swisstech Convention Centre, Lausanne (image courtesy of
juanbisquert.files.wordpress.com)

company called Polysolar have just this month completed the installation of the countrys first
transparent glass solar-powered bus stop. Momentum had been lost with this type of cell early
in its development on account of the low efficiency. However as this improves over time and
the efficiency of our electrical goods the market may well have a bigger place for it.

Graph showing best efficiencies achieved in research cells by year, efficiency, cell type and company
Image courtesy of NREL

Next step for technology

MEPV

Left: Electron microscope image of 2No

MEPV cells; each measures approximately
250microns across.
Above: individual
MEPV cells suspended in conductive
plastic array.

The area where there may be significant leaps in the future is in Microsystems-Enabled
Photovoltaics (MEPV). Nanotechnology and microfabrication techniques currently in use is

Images courtesy of sandia.gov

semiconductor industry allow for photovoltaic units to be assembled that are microns, or even
nanometres wide. Not only can these elements be set on flexible substrate allowing for a broad
range of architectural applications, they are potentially small enough according to research
carried out by Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico to be applied dispersed in a
medium such as paint or printing ink.

The change in the landscape here is clear. As the cell size drops, the range of applications
expands drastically; the cells could be painted / sprayed onto existing building fabric. In the
same way as TFPV repurposes existing technology and fabrication techniques, MEPV too
borrows from existing fabrication systems already in place for microprocessor and circuit board
construction. As these markets are ever growing, production costs look set to only further
decrease with time. To this end, the cost of producing the MEPV cells could drop to a point
where they could be mixed into a building material, in the same way that pigment is mixed into
through-coloured render. This deep integration into architecture would see the paradigm shift
imagined at the start of this report become a reality.
Link to TEDx talk, ABQ by Vipin Gupta of Sandia Laboratories

If we pay attention to all things great and small, the powering of almost anything could become
as simple as exposing it to light
Vipin Gupta, Sandia National Laboratories

Next step for society / policy

With research and development establishing that PV can meaningfully contribute as part
of a comprehensive renewable energy strategy to our energy production, one can then
start to explore the effect of this change beyond the walls of our own home. Not only can
this model improve how we operate as discrete domestic units, but there may be scope to
unite smaller communities in their energy collection. Distribution of collectively-harvested
energy as part of a Community Interest Company possibly on a means-tested basis- could
add much needed support to households in fuel poverty.
Solar battery technology will also play its part here. At present solar batteries are most
popular among off-grid properties where energy harvested can be stored for prolonged
periods of time. Based around the same principles as car batteries i.e. converting chemical
energy into electrical energy, most existing solar batteries are lead-acid based. Teslas foray
into this field the Powerwall is a lithium ion battery; more like a camera battery in
composition than a car battery. The module currently in production is designed to store
6.4kWh of electricity; the principle being that a home can collect the energy throughout the
day by renewable means (or at night, if a property is on an Economy 7-type tariff). The
stored electricity can then be used on a daily cycle at a time convenient to the user; for
example, when the Sun is not out, or when electricity from the grid is more expensive.
Powerwall is designed to work on a single dwelling basis, but like a typical battery, several
can be chained together for mass energy storage. This comes back to the notion of
community shared-energy schemes, where apartment blocks may be designed with some
plots having more access to PV than others; neighbours could share energy as well as
communal garden space.

Feed-in tariffs / export tariff

Current:

Feed-in tariff incentivising of PV owner ship

Devised to catalyse uptake of PV; has been pared back since January 2016
(www.gov.uk, 2016)
Export tariffs: allow for energy created to be sold back to the National Grid.

Customers could get payments from their energy suppliers if they generate their own electricity.
The feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme gave a more favourable rate to those signed up prior to 14
January 2016; anyone signing up after this early adopters cut-off period would be on a less
lucrative tariff, as well as being subject to a limit on the number of installations supported.
On top of this, there is an export tariff: this applies to households that generate enough energy
to create a surplus. This electricity can be fed back into the grid at a rate agreed with the
Government rather than the electricity provider.

Conclusion / reflection
The final piece is the conclusion, looking at how this pre-existing understanding of PV
technology can impact on the design itself. As discussed, a shift in aesthetic may well occur,
with PV components no longer being restricted to being glossy, blue sheets of silicon. Overtly
"green-looking" buildings (blue and glossy panels, windmills on the roof) would give way to
builds that use these new materials. There may be some colours of material that channel
photons from the Sun in a better way, but this PV capability - combined with modern fabrication
techniques - could lead to more organic forms in the field of eco-friendly buildings.
Over the course of this investigation, we have covered the discovery of the photovoltaic effect;
its earliest forms, its links to pioneering endeavours such as space travel, through to its current
position as a potent energy form with the capacity if fully harnessed to power our way of life
on this planet many times over. We have also briefly looked at what might lay around the corner
for the photovoltaics industry. Thin film photovoltaics have been in existence for several years,
but hitting the sweet spot of high product demand and falling production prices may be the
catalyst that TFPV needs, especially if efficiency continues to improve.

Park Lane Campus, Leeds City College

Image courtesy of geography.org.uk

MEPV is truly revolutionary technology that can undoubtedly change the way that we as a
civilisation harness and use solar energy. There are several areas in which this tech can be
employed: among which are obviously architecture and construction. Knowing what can be
achieved with these miniature solar cells, one must ask: what physical and aesthetic impact will
this have on architecture, knowing that in order to have PV, one is not now obliged to clad the
roof or south-facing wall with navy blue glossy plates?
To look forward to how these buildings may appear, it may first help to look back. As PV panels
have become more available, the inclusion of them as part of a scheme may be seen as an
ecological badge of honour. This is typically true of schemes that feature either building
integrated photovoltaics or building-applied photovoltaics (BIPV and BAPV respectively).
Buildings such as Leeds City Colleges Park Lane campus make a point of drawing as much
attention to the photovoltaics as possible. The look of the navy blue plates with the stainless
steel framing in between is an immediately recognisable motif that carries the message We are
doing our part for the environment!. The way in which PV has been used in this scheme
demonstrates the strong intention to use the renewable technology from the outset: the way in
which the panelling it clearly has not been thrown into the mix at the last minute.

A far more extreme example of this inclusion would be the

Panasonic Solar Ark in Gifu, Japan. The very reason for the
buildings creation was to celebrate the technology (as well as
Sanyos 50th anniversary). Incidentally, the panels that were
due to be used were eschewed for the thousands of panels
that Sanyo had to recall on account of under-performance.
Arguably the reuse of these panels that were otherwise
destined for decommission simply added to the buildings
ethos

of

sustainability.

Not

only

are

the

panels

complementary of the design, but the building has been

designed with their appearance at its centre of focus.
Panasonic Solar Ark, featuring in excess of 5,000 solar panels

A happy medium in this regard would be Rolf Dischs

Image courtesy: blogs.cas.suffolk.edu

Sonnenschiff (Sunship) project in Freiburg. Completed in

2004, its exemplary sustainable strategy means that it generated four times more energy than it
uses. This commercial development employs Passivhaus standards throughout and each block
incorporates swathes of PV panelling. The design is not overtly eco however: were it not for
the aerial photographs taken as part of the company gallery and review, it might not be obvious
to the everyday pedestrian that the roofs are almost all PV-panelled.
This is likely the way that architecture will lean, if photovoltaic technology continues to evolve
as suggested by the findings of this report. The PV elements currently in use have their own
established aesthetic now; as such, they will still be called upon in schemes to give the desired
look to a design whilst delivering the required amounts of energy. What will come to the fore,
one imagines, is stealth sustainability: buildings made with components that inherently draw
power from sunlight, via nanotechnology dispersed in the bricks, mortar, render, or sprayed
onto the cladding panels for example.

Sonnenschiff, Freiburg, by Rolf Disch Solar Architecture

Image courtesy of rolfdisch.de

A vision that is likely not too far away is the combination of this technology with 3D printing.
Fluid, optimised forms could be designed using BIM and sustainable parametric design to best
harness natures elements on the site in question. With this form established, large-scale
additive 3D printers could set to work using a medium that is interspersed with millions of
miniscule cells. Cast onto an engineered substrate / skeleton, these sculpted buildings could
incorporate photosensitivity into their array of built-in self-sustaining qualities.
In summary, the future is bright (no pun intended) for photovoltaic energy: there are a number
of branches of this technology currently being pushed ahead by some of the best brains in
science and engineering. Out of the featured examples, microscale PV is a personal favourite,
not only on account of the style in which this delivers its solution, but also because of the number
of ways in which this technology could potentially change the way we live.

Ideas for development

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