This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
NET Zero looks to be more than just a pipe dream for the City of Melbourne, with city-scale modelling finding photovoltaics could provide around three-quarters of building consumption needs.
According to a new research by members of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science at Monash University, 74% of Melbourne’s building consumption requirements could be met by window-integrated photovoltaics and other solar technologies.
The study found that just by adopting already in use PV rooftop systems throughout the entire city, Melbourne’s carbon footprint could be drastically reduced.
The city-scale modelling is the global first of its kind to measure the viability and impact of these technologies at this scale.
“By using photovoltaic technology commercially available today and incorporating the expected advances in wall and window-integrated solar technology over the next ten years, we could potentially see our CBD on its way to Net Zero in the coming decades,” said Jacek Jasieniak, corresponding author of the study.
The modelling revealed that of these photovoltaics, rooftop solar would account for 88% of the provided power supply, while wall and window integrated solar technologies would account for a respective 8% and 4%.
At a neighbourhood scale, window-integrated solar is calculated to be as high at 18% however, thanks to high building heights and window to wall ratios.
“In the near future, market penetration and deployment of high-efficient solar windows can make a substantive contribution towards the carbon footprint mitigation of high-rise developments,” said Maria Panagiotidou, lead author of the study.
Additionally, this emerging “solar window” and photovoltaic technology has also been founded to remain more consistent throughout the year, negating some of the downsides of roof top solar throughout the winter months.
“As the world transitions towards a net-zero future, these local energy solutions would play a critical role in increasing the propensity of PVs within urban environments,” said Panagiotidou.
Cbus Property just this week announced its updated plans for its $1 billion commercial office tower in Melbourne’s CBD, which include this technology, with a solar skin façade set to generate 20% of the building’s power.
“Although there’s plenty of policies supporting energy-efficiency standards for new buildings, we’re yet to see a substantial response to ensuring our existing buildings are retrofitted to meet the challenges of climate change,” said Jenny Zhou, co-author of the study.
With the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference taking place in Glasgow, The property industry at large has been responding to increasing pressure to meet 2050 net zero targets.
Hundreds of property companies in the built environment sector recently signed onto the Race to Zero campaign to achieve net zero carbon by 2050, while in a similar commitment the Australian Institute of Architects recently joined global building industry leaders to call for a more urgent transition to net-zero emissions.
“Our research provides a framework that can help decision-makers move forward with implementing photovoltaic technologies that will reduce our cities’ reliance on damaging fossil fuels,” concluded Zhou.
