Page 58 - European Energy Innovation - Winter 2015 publication
P. 58
Winter 2015 European Energy Innovation
SMART WINDOWS
other words, windows today lose
5 times less heat than they did
4 decades years ago. However,
to determine the real energy
performance of a window, the
solar gain needs to be credited
against the heat loss (U-value)
to give an “equivalent U-value”
(or “energy performance
YDOXHŐ2EYLRXVO\WKLVƓJXUH
varies greatly depending on
the orientation of the facade in
which the window is installed:
windows on a south-facing
facade will generally be more
HQHUJ\HIƓFLHQWWKDQHYHQDZHOO
insulated wall.
CURRENT SMART WINDOW ´6PDUWDVVPDUWFDQEHµ²SKRWRYROWDLFVVRODUVKDGLQJHWFRQ
PROJECTS WKHVRXWKIDFLQJIDFDGHRIWKH$NWLY6WDGWKDXVLQ)UDQNIXUW
It is against this background
Photo: EuroWindoor-PCL
WKDWWKHƓUVWŏ(XURSHDQ6PDUW
just of environmental quality at LPSURYHWKHHQHUJ\HIƓFLHQF\RI
Windows Conference” (an the building level, but also socio- windows and buildings. They will
initiative of the European cultural and economic quality. enable window functionality to
Commission and part of the be extended beyond the current
“World Sustainable Energy Days”) A major part of the European European state of the art. The
took place in February 2015 Smart Windows Conference was improvements will be achieved
in Wels, Austria. As Secretary devoted to presentations on a through reduced weights,
General of EuroWindoor, I gave range of current EU research reduced thermal conductivities
a talk at the conference entitled and energy consumption,
“LCEA from an industrial point SURMHFWVLQWKHƓHOGRIVPDUW reduced material usage, and
windows. One such project was monitoring of the windows’ life
RIYLHZŊFKDOOHQJHV EHQHƓWVŐ “HarWin” (“Harvesting solar cycle environmental performance.
energy with multifunctional glass- New additional functionalities,
(LCEA = “Life Cycle Energy polymer windows”), for whom e.g. window-integrated functional
Analysis”), in which I looked at EuroWindoor is the “Industry coatings, will be combined
the problems of using life cycle Advisory Board”. The following is with intelligent phase-change
analyses (as demanded today materials and novel glass-polymer
by EU research projects) for DQH[FHUSWIURPWKHRIƓFLDOSURMHFW composites with wavelength
comparing different products. description2: management capabilities.
Often the datasets used in
LCEA calculations do not allow In HarWin new materials will The new materials will combine
meaningful comparison, due be developed with the aim of heat and moisture control
to differences in boundary constructing next-generation
conditions or in the products’
technical performance. If project ZLQGRZVWKDWZLOOVLJQLƓFDQWO\
decisions are taken on the basis
of misleading LCEAs, the project
FDQSURGXFHŴDZHGSURGXFWV,Q
addition, the product’s entire life
cycle needs to be considered;
current approaches for assessing
sustainability take account not
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
SMART WINDOWS
other words, windows today lose
5 times less heat than they did
4 decades years ago. However,
to determine the real energy
performance of a window, the
solar gain needs to be credited
against the heat loss (U-value)
to give an “equivalent U-value”
(or “energy performance
YDOXHŐ2EYLRXVO\WKLVƓJXUH
varies greatly depending on
the orientation of the facade in
which the window is installed:
windows on a south-facing
facade will generally be more
HQHUJ\HIƓFLHQWWKDQHYHQDZHOO
insulated wall.
CURRENT SMART WINDOW ´6PDUWDVVPDUWFDQEHµ²SKRWRYROWDLFVVRODUVKDGLQJHWFRQ
PROJECTS WKHVRXWKIDFLQJIDFDGHRIWKH$NWLY6WDGWKDXVLQ)UDQNIXUW
It is against this background
Photo: EuroWindoor-PCL
WKDWWKHƓUVWŏ(XURSHDQ6PDUW
just of environmental quality at LPSURYHWKHHQHUJ\HIƓFLHQF\RI
Windows Conference” (an the building level, but also socio- windows and buildings. They will
initiative of the European cultural and economic quality. enable window functionality to
Commission and part of the be extended beyond the current
“World Sustainable Energy Days”) A major part of the European European state of the art. The
took place in February 2015 Smart Windows Conference was improvements will be achieved
in Wels, Austria. As Secretary devoted to presentations on a through reduced weights,
General of EuroWindoor, I gave range of current EU research reduced thermal conductivities
a talk at the conference entitled and energy consumption,
“LCEA from an industrial point SURMHFWVLQWKHƓHOGRIVPDUW reduced material usage, and
windows. One such project was monitoring of the windows’ life
RIYLHZŊFKDOOHQJHV EHQHƓWVŐ “HarWin” (“Harvesting solar cycle environmental performance.
energy with multifunctional glass- New additional functionalities,
(LCEA = “Life Cycle Energy polymer windows”), for whom e.g. window-integrated functional
Analysis”), in which I looked at EuroWindoor is the “Industry coatings, will be combined
the problems of using life cycle Advisory Board”. The following is with intelligent phase-change
analyses (as demanded today materials and novel glass-polymer
by EU research projects) for DQH[FHUSWIURPWKHRIƓFLDOSURMHFW composites with wavelength
comparing different products. description2: management capabilities.
Often the datasets used in
LCEA calculations do not allow In HarWin new materials will The new materials will combine
meaningful comparison, due be developed with the aim of heat and moisture control
to differences in boundary constructing next-generation
conditions or in the products’
technical performance. If project ZLQGRZVWKDWZLOOVLJQLƓFDQWO\
decisions are taken on the basis
of misleading LCEAs, the project
FDQSURGXFHŴDZHGSURGXFWV,Q
addition, the product’s entire life
cycle needs to be considered;
current approaches for assessing
sustainability take account not
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
