Advanced Materials in Smart Building Skins for Sustainability: From Nano to Macroscale

The concept of BIPV refers to the capability of photovoltaic systems to be multifunctional and interact with the building, producing free energy from a renewable source. The use of PV in the building sector rises many questions, for example re-imagining the building envelope both in aesthetics and technology, where the photovoltaic element has an additional building functionality, namely replacing an element of the building skin. PV modules should effectively play the role of traditional building components and their performance is required for the integrity of the building’s functionality. The concept of BIPV refers to the capability of photovoltaic systems to be multifunctional and interact with the building, producing free energy from a renewable source. The use of PV in the building sector rises many questions, for example re-imagining the building envelope both in aesthetics and technology, where the photovolta3 ic element has an additional building functionality, namely replacing an element of the building skin. PV modules should effectively play the role of traditional building components and their performance is required for the integrity of the building’s functionality.