Apr 02, 2019 ByLauren Davey In Sustainable development As a country where the term ‘load-shedding’ has become ingrained in our everyday culture, investigating, implementing and using alternative energy and electricity supplies should be very high on our list of priorities. With the immense amount of sunlight that we get in South Africa, our somewhat passive pursuit of solar energy is truly an enigma. The question remains: Why don’t we have solar energy powering every business, house, hospital, shopping centre, school? ‘The need to save energy in buildings is becoming too big for developers and architects to ignore.’ – Jeff Horowitz, NEXT Energy Technologies One solar panel on the roof might be enough to power a geyser at home, but if we consider that commercial buildings use over a third of global energy, then we must concede that we need more than just a few solar panels on the roof if we, as a global society, are going to have any sort of positive impact on our carbon footprint and/or climate change. A possible solution to our problems: PV glass <span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start"></span> Photovoltaic (PV) glass is semi-transparent glass, made up of two or more panes of heat-treated safety glass and, like conventional architectural glass, can be installed almost anywhere, on any building. The Dubai Frame | Photo: RajeshUnupally, 2018, Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en/ La Seine Musicale | Photo: Daniel Engelvin, 2017, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/134469298@N03/33485144762/in/photostream/ Unlike regular solar panels, PV glass can also be aesthetically customised to suit the project and client needs. A great example of building-integrated PV (BIPV) and the adaptability of this technology is the Dubai Frame, which used yellow-gold tinted PV glass to create their iconic landmark and the world’s largest picture frame. Another beautiful and innovative example of what can be done with PV is the concert hall, La Seine Musicale in Paris, France. Built on Île Seguin on the Seine River in west Paris, La Seine Musicale is an oval-shaped auditorium with a PV covered, triangular ‘sail’ that follows the path of the Sun. According the world’s leading PV glass manufacturer, Onyx, PV glass: Generates free, clean energy Allows for natural light inside buildings Provides thermal and sound insulation Reduces cooling, heating and air handling costs Filters 99% of harmful UV radiation Filters up to 95% of IR radiation Can be aesthetically customised and integrated into any project design. ‘Yes, you could make a building zero-carbon by covering it in photovoltaics.’ – Polysolar CEO, Hamish Watson Interestingly, not only can PV glass work at very low levels of light (with the ability to produce energy even when there is less than 10% sunlight available), but it can also work on any vertical façade as it absorbs ambient and reflective light as well. PV glass should not be seen as a source of energy, but as a building material in its own right that can aid in the future-proofing of buildings, while serendipitously being a long-term investment in the reduction of costs, energy usage and CO2 emissions. Contact us for more information on how to integrate solar into your design. References: https://www.onyxsolar.com/ https://www.power-technology.com/features/featuresolar-windows-the-future-of-zero-carbon-buildings-4893224/ https://www.archsolar.org/blog/architectural-solar-building-momentum Tags :building facadesclimate changecost savingsDubai Frameenergy savingsfuture-proofingGreen architectureLa Seine Musicaleload-sheddingPhotovoltaic GlassPV Glassrenewable energySolar architectureSolar technology in architecturesustainable energyzero-carbon