Examining the climate responsiveness of End-of-life photovoltaic (EoL-PV) integrated buildings

Abstract

Globally, 70-80 million tonnes of EoL-PV waste is expected by 2050. A large fraction of PV waste heading into landfills threatens the environment and human health. On the other hand, the rising need for building materials in developing countries is imminent. A hitherto untried solution is proposed to use EoL-PV panels as a building material to address this issue, and this approach will enable sourcing a low-cost, low-embodied energy building material. This work examines the climate responsiveness of a building adopting EoL-PV as a wall. A prototype building is commissioned, and a simulation model of the same building is created. EoL-PV, due to its lower thermal mass and high thermal transmittance, results in higher variations of temperature and RH. This may imply poor occupant comfort and requires modifications to the EoL-PV panel to be used as a building material, ensuring good thermal performance and occupant comfort.