ENVISION

Development of a full renovation concept harvesting solar energy from all available building surfaces, both transparent and opaque

ENVISION

ENergy harVesting by Invisible Solar IntegratiON in building skins

Business Time Project Coordinator Funding Scheme
T&I Start date: 01/10/2017
End date: 31/03/2022
TNO H2020-EEB-2017

Challenges

Application of photovoltaic solar panels and/or collectors has increased considerably in recent years, but they are mainly applied on roofs due to aesthetics, practical reasons and price. 

Efficiently managing solar radiation on buildings provides an enormous potential, since in EU a total of 60 billion square meters of façade surfaces exists, and the current usage of solar radiation onopaque surfaces is still minimal. Together with roofs, this would mean a total of 120 billion square meters of potential.

For the first time, a full renovation concept that harvests energy from ALL building surfaces, both transparent and opaque, will be demonstrated.

In particular, ENVISION will develop four innovative technologies:

  • Solar heat collectors based on the usage of NIR absorbing coloured coatings
  • Covered solar heat collectors using colored NIR transparent glasses
  • Smart ventilated heat harvesting window
  • PV harvesting glasses

ENVISION has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 767180.

Approach

RINA will lead the Work Package related to the demonstration of ENVISION technologies in relevant environment (TRL 7/8). In particular, ENVISION technologies will be tested in two building typologies: detached house (Italy) and block of flats (Netherlands).

Rina will define a specific monitoring approach with the following aims:

  • to evaluate through a Key Performance Indicators panel, the benefits and the energy and economic performances of the ENVISION technologies
  • to develop a comprehensive energy assessment methodology suitable for the proposed technologies and wider applications in the target sectors
  • to assess operational and functional efficiency of the developed technologies and carry a detailed energy audit

The monitoring results will be analysed with the aim to  provide robust and technically feasible solutions to further improve efficiency and reach project targets

Moreover, RINA will ensure a widespread and effective communication of project results, showing that Energy Harvesting will be a suitable future business for retrofitting and building industry in general.

RINA will also create an Exploitation and IPR Protection Plan and define a replication strategy for the successful application of project results across EU-28 addressing, key non-technical barriers and legal constraints.

In conclusion, ENVISION innovative technologies, to be applied both to existing and new buildings, will:

  • Use the maximum of façade surface to harvest energy while retaining the aesthetic environment (architecture etc.) of buildings
  • Be characterised by a higher energy performance compared with commercial solutions
  • Be easy to install and implement (<2 days installation time)
  • Be cost effective (payback <10 years)
  • reduce the load on the electrical grid

Project Consortium

1 NEDERLANDSE ORGANISATIE VOOR TOEGEPAST NATUURWETENSCHAPPELIJK ONDERZOEK TNO, Netherlands 2 AKZO NOBEL DECORATIVE COATINGS BV, Netherlands 3 IMPERIAL CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES LIMITED, United Kingdom 4 BAM TECHNIEK BV, Netherlands 5 BAM WONINGBOUW BV, Netherlands 6 ELECTRICITE DE FRANCE EDF, France 7 PILKINGTON NEDERLAND BV NSG1, Netherlands 8 PILKINGTON DEUTSCHLAND AG NSG2, Germany 9 RINA Consulting Spa, Italy 10 BERGAMO TECNOLOGIE SPZOO BGT, Poland 11 UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI GENOVA UGT, Italy 12 STICHTING VESTIA VST, Netherlands 13 EMERGO HOUT & BOUW BV, Netherlands

Giorgia Spigliantini