BIPV Curtain Wall: Material Parameters and Mounting Type

ladybug-tools
,
1

螢幕擷取畫面 2026-01-23 174847
螢幕擷取畫面 2026-01-23 174847914×593 55.2 KB

image
image2410×700 114 KB

螢幕擷取畫面 2026-01-23 181053
螢幕擷取畫面 2026-01-23 1810532561×653 94.9 KB

Hi everyone,

I am currently working integrated simulation of a BIPV (Building Integrated Photovoltaics) curtain wall. I have read through several related topics on the forum, but I still have some uncertainties regarding the correct workflow in Honeybee .

My goal is to simulate both the thermal impact (heat gain/loss) and the electricity generation of a BIPV facade simultaneously.

I would appreciate your advice on the following points:

  1. Modeling the BIPV Window : My current approach is to treat the BIPV module as a “Window” for thermal calculation and a “Shade” for generation.

Thermal: I created a custom HB Window Material with specific U-value and SHGC parameters to represent the BIPV glass.
Electrical: I plan to assign HB Photovoltaic Properties to the geometry. Is it possible (or recommended) to apply HB Photovoltaic Properties directly to the HB Aperture (Window) that has the BIPV material? Or must I create a separate HB Shade object overlapping the window to handle the PV generation part?

  1. Physical Parameters Source I am using technical data from the Onyx Solar Professional Experience Book to define the material.

U-factor: 5.4 W/m²K
SHGC: 0.45
Tvis: 0.38
Nominal Power: 120 W/m² (Efficiency ~12%) Are these values sufficient for the HB Window Material component to reasonably approximate the thermal behavior of a BIPV curtain wall?

  1. Mounting Type for Curtain Wall Since this is a vertical BIPV curtain wall (integrated into the building skin), I am unsure which mounting_type to select in the HB PV Properties component.

FixedOpenRack: Seems to imply free airflow on the back (ground mount).
FixedRoofMounted:Implies limited airflow. For a vertical curtain wall system, should I select FixedRoofMounted to correctly simulate the higher cell temperatures caused by limited back ventilation?

Thank you in advance for your time and help!

2

Now I try to use Add_str, and depend on the output Generator Produced DC Electricity Energy, it works!
! — BIPV Generator Setup (Decoupled Mode) —

! 1. Define PV Performance
PhotovoltaicPerformance:Simple,
My_BIPV_Perf_Obj, !- Name
0.90, !- Fraction of Surface Area with Active Solar Cells
Fixed, !- Conversion Efficiency Input Mode
0.12; !- Value for Fixed Efficiency

! 2. Define Generator Object
Generator:Photovoltaic,
My_BIPV_Gen_Unit, !- Name
Aperture_a8f510b3, !- Surface Name
PhotovoltaicPerformance:Simple, !- Photovoltaic Performance Object Type
My_BIPV_Perf_Obj, !- Photovoltaic Performance Object Name
Decoupled, !- Heat Transfer Integration Mode (Changed to Decoupled!)
1.0, !- Number of Modules in Parallel
1.0; !- Number of Modules in Series

! 3. Define Generator List
ElectricLoadCenter:Generators,
My_BIPV_Gen_List, !- Name
My_BIPV_Gen_Unit, !- Generator 1 Name
Generator:Photovoltaic, !- Generator 1 Object Type
1000, !- Generator 1 Rated Electric Power Output {W}
, !- Generator 1 Availability Schedule Name
;

! 4. Define Inverter
ElectricLoadCenter:Inverter:Simple,
My_BIPV_Inverter, !- Name
, !- Availability Schedule Name
0.0, !- Radiative Fraction
0.96; !- Inverter Efficiency

! 5. Define Distribution System
ElectricLoadCenter:Distribution,
My_BIPV_ELC, !- Name
My_BIPV_Gen_List, !- Generator List Name
Baseload, !- Generator Operation Scheme Type
0, !- Demand Limit Scheme Purchased Electric Demand Limit {W}
, !- Track Schedule Name Scheme Schedule Name
, !- Track Meter Scheme Meter Name
DirectCurrentWithInverter, !- Electrical Buss Type
My_BIPV_Inverter; !- Inverter Object Name