Design and analysis of an urban building integrated PV system

The objective of the present project is to estimate the power generated from solar energy absorbed by photovoltaic panels mounted on the facade of a building in an urban environment, taking into account shading and reflection from neighboring buildings. A simple prototype of an urban development has been designed and modeled in AutoCAD, with the help of AccuRender. This paper includes the simulation of the model, taking into consideration the building geometry, orientation with respect to the sun, material properties of the surrounding buildings, and ground reflections. Also included is a discussion about a scaled physical model that is being used to validate the computer modeling, followed by a case study on the installation of a BIPV system on Ten Penn Center in Center City, Philadelphia.