Project description
Organic photovoltaics for eco-friendly buildings
Building applied photovoltaic (BAPV) systems utilise solar panels retrofitted onto building structures such as rooftops or facades to generate electricity. The EU-funded BOOSTER project plans to use flexible organic photovoltaic (OPV) films, which are deemed suitable for BAPV applications. OPV modules feature a low energy payback time and use resources that are abundant, easily accessible and non-toxic. The project will bring OPV technology to TRL 7 by increasing module efficiency and lifetime while also optimising production costs. For successful proof of principle of the idea, researchers will demonstrate a "ready-to-stick" module and a textile-integrated product.
Objective
In the context of increasing energy demand, thin film PV technologies contribute in reducing CO2 emission. Current PV technologies are suffering from several issues: 1 – the outsourcing of PV modules outside Europe, 2 – the large distance between consumption points and generating power plants and 3 – the use of agricultural fields by solar power plant. In this context, building applied photovoltaic (BAPV) approach can face these issues by bringing functionalization to facades or roofs with a small constraint on the building. BOOSTER project targets at deploying the OPV technology to the BAPV market. OPV is a technology that addresses the problematic of world energy production with an eco-responsible approach. Manufacturing OPV modules via printing techniques features a low energy-payback-time and uses resources that are abundant, easily accessible and non toxic. Additionally, OPV demonstrates properties (flexibility, lightweight) that make it easily suitable for BAPV. Recently, technology benefited from a rapid progress of performances with development of advanced materials. The project BOOSTER aims at bringing the OPV technology to a TRL 7 by increasing efficiency, lifetime together with optimizing costs and lowering carbon footprint. Two demonstrators will be installed to illustrated BAPV concepts: a “ready to stick module” and a textile integrated product. BOOSTER will provide an efficient multi-layer OPV architecture demonstrating efficiency up to 15 %. Advanced multifunctional barrier films will be manufactured to increase the lifetime to 35 years. With a large-scale production approach, efforts will be placed on scaling up all the materials and optimization of the R2R manufacturing line to coat all the layers with minimization of performance loss while targeting drastic cost reduction. BOOSTER BAPV products will be integrated in two different locations (FAU in Germany, ENI in Italy), where real-life efficiency will be studied during last year of the project.
Fields of science
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsrenewable energysolar energy
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringtextiles
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcoating and films
- engineering and technologycivil engineeringarchitecture engineeringsustainable architecturesustainable building
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
IA - Innovation actionCoordinator
44100 Nantes
France