Integrated Façade System for Office Buildings in Hot and Arid Climates: A Comparative Analysis

Abstract

High solar gain in hot and arid climates, causes overheating in summer and increases the demand for air-conditioning, energy and carbon footprints of buildings. There are different strategies, tools, and solutions to address this problem, but Integrated Façade Systems (IFS) -façade systems where different technological solutions are integrated to improve performance and to lower the impact of the building -are still an under-developed yet a fast-growing field of research. Such systems can reduce solar heat gain, lower air conditioning costs and lessen glare, while maximising the use of natural light and help produce energy if combined with PV technology. Previous research has addressed one or a combination of some of the influential factors on performance of such systems, yet there still is a gap in the state-of-the-art research in comprehensive systematic approach not only to help gauge the impact of alteration of parameters on the IFS performance, but also an approach which can be deployed in other studies where the focus is on façade systems. With a special reference to office buildings in hot and arid climates, this paper sets out to systematically identify IFS parameters which have potential impacts on energy, lighting, glare and heat gain. Then as a part of a comprehensive ongoing research in this area, this paper presents a proof-of-concept to demonstrate the application of such methodology to a parametric study of IFS technology. In doing so, it chooses only one of the parameters indicated in this systematic review and uses building simulation as its core method to investigate the influence and impacts of those variations on performance of IFS. It will indicate how this approach provides high flexibility to adjust or configure any combination of those parameters and to measure, subjectively, how this will result in change in façade performance.

Evaluation of Climate Adaptive Building Skins in the Last Decade

“…contain combined technological solutions that increase building performance and reduce environmental impact. Accordingly, technological solutions in this context can be broadly classified under four components (Ibraheem et al, 2017):…”

Glazed Facades Buildings in the Different Climatic Regions in Algeria: The Architects’ Viewpoint

“…More other problems and disadvantages are also related to fully glazed façades buildings at the indoor space and the urban surrounding area levels. They directly impact the occupant's thermal and visual comfort and have an intrinsic relationship with overheating, glare, and the high-energy demand (Hien et al, 2005;Bustamante et al, 2014;Ibraheem et al, 2017). Surprisingly, Flodberg (2012) concludes that energetic consumption for lighting, in office buildings' case, is not always lowered by the large glazed external walls.…”

“…Surprisingly, Flodberg (2012) concludes that energetic consumption for lighting, in office buildings' case, is not always lowered by the large glazed external walls. This is due to the occupants' recourse to shading devices in order to reduce glare effects (Ibraheem et al, 2017). These latter have been extensively studied in different countries for the case of glazed facades buildings.…”

Energy Production Analysis of Photovoltaic Shading Devices (PVSD) in Integrated Façade Systems (IFS)

“…They can offer positive impacts on the environment and play a major role as an integrated and holistic building design strategy. Better control of heat gain, thereby air-conditioning loads can be administered, and glare control while the use of natural light is maximized are but just to name a few advantages IFSs can potentially offer (Ibraheem et al, 2017b;Taveres-Cachat et al, 2017;Yoo, 2019). Incorporating High-Performance Glazing (HPG), Shading Devices (SD), and Integrated Photovoltaics (IPV) are some of the most effective strategies in designing IFSs.…”