Energy and Thermal Performance Analysis of PCM-Incorporated Glazing Units Combined with Passive and Active Techniques: A Review Study

Abstract

The building envelope provides thermal comfort, an excellent visual view, and sunlight for the occupants. It consists of two parts: (i) an opaque (non-transparent) part (e.g., walls and roofs) and (ii) a transparent part (e.g., windows, curtain walls, and skylight devices). Recently, the use of fully-glazed facades, especially in large cities, has increased due to their aesthetical and structural advantages. This has led this study to review the performance of the currently passive smart glazing technologies. Phase Change Materials (PCMs) as latent energy storage material is the focus of this review, as well as other individual and combined techniques, including shading systems, solar cells (photovoltaic), and chromogenic (thermotropic and thermochromic) materials. PCM-integrated glazing systems have been extensively studied and rapidly developed over the past several decades from the standpoint of unique system designs, such as passive, active, and passive/active mixed designs, intelligent management, and sophisticated controls. In the academic literature, numerous studies on PCM-integrated building envelopes have been conducted, but a comprehensive review of PCM-integrated GUs combined with other passive and active techniques using dialectical analysis and comparing the climatic conditions of each study using Köppen-Geiger climate classification climate classification has been performed only rarely. Consequently, the primary objective of this study is to reduce this discrepancy for all types of glazing, excluding glazed roofs. This review article also contains literature tables as well as highlights, limitations, and further research suggestions at the end of each subsection.

Comprehensive Review and Analysis of Glazing Systems towards Nearly Zero-Energy Buildings: Energy Performance, Thermal Comfort, Cost-Effectiveness, and Environmental Impact Perspectives

“…Depending on the WWR, climate, type, and configuration, PV window glazing systems have the capacity for energy savings of around 12% to 76% [64]. By combining PV glazing systems with other technologies, it becomes possible to enhance the thermal performance of smart glazing solutions, resulting in improved energy efficiency.…”

“…Regarding curtain selection, it was discussed that overhangs outperformed interior blinds by saving energy by around 2% to 10% in hot climates [53]. Shading systems have the potential to yield energy savings ranging from 10% to 75% annually, depending on factors such as the type of glazing, climate conditions, and the positioning of the shading devices [64]. Ganji Kheybari et al [73] stated that the literature showed that automated dynamic shading could save more energy than manual operations or static systems.…”

“…Multiple studies have demonstrated the energy benefits of integrating shading devices into glazing systems [53,64,75,76]. Nonetheless, selecting the wrong shading option, the absence of shading, or using shading improperly on glazing systems may lead to negative consequences [77].…”

“…In general, the literature showed that the application of advanced glazing systems such as water flow glazing [8,59], aerogel glazing systems [45], PCM-integrated glazing systems [30,60,61,63], PV glazing [64,65], and smart glazing systems [33,[67][68][69][70][71] could result in energy performance improvements. -PCM-integrated glazing systems may compromise the desirable solar heat gain in cold climates [62], and PV glazing application in extreme climates, especially in very cold climates, was questioned [66].…”

Contribution of advanced windows and façades to buildings decarbonization: A comprehensive review

“…reviewed the different concepts related to PCMs and details of the different types of PCMs according to climate Xu et al (2022). prepared a phasechange gel with relatively high melting enthalpy, better leak proof characteristics, better thermal insulation, besides increasing time lag and lowering peak temperature Arasteh et al (2023). reviewed energy and thermal performance of PCMincorporated glazing units combined with passive and active techniques including current passive smart glazing technologies, whileMichael et al (2023) provided a review on established and emerging glazing technologies and the inclusion of multiple functionalities to improve overall building performance.…”