Systems
The Solar Decathlon competition places significant demands on the home to produce an abundance of usable energy. Electricity production will be the biggest challenge in Washington, D.C. while, back in Alberta, heating will cause the largest energy load.
The team is evaluating both commercially available and custom-designed components that will allow the house to produce electricity and extract usable heat from the same surface. One of the planned features will be a prototype insulated window blind that optimizes the day lighting, electrical production and solar heat gain.
The Solar Decathlon competition aims to foster greater awareness and interest in solar technology, namely BIPV (building integrated photovoltaics), in conjunction with energy efficiency measures to reduce overall energy usage and costs.
Our team has participated in various activities, such as attending a solar energy conference as well as meetings with industry professionals and faculty working on innovative, relevant projects. We have successfully integrated aspects of the project into the curriculum of a first-year engineering design course. In the near future, our team intends to attend a conference on new research in PV technology, and to expand our knowledge base by procuring new literature on solar technology.