Co-simulation techniques for BIPV assessment

This PhD-project is part of a research project Developing Applied Building Photovoltaics for Performance and Reliability (DAPPER). DAPPER aims at research that provides the basics for improved planning, design choices, and operations of BIPV systems. The four target areas are: 

• improved energy yield prediction, of the entire system, and over its lifetime
• design rules, choice of components, and guidelines for maximal performance and reliability 
• tools for continuous monitoring enabling self-test and predictive maintenance
• provisions for interfacing with an energy management system including energy forecasting

The project will develop novel solutions which are building on an existing energy yield simulation framework and methodology. This is a detailed bottom-up physics-based model for the calculation of the energy yield that will be expanded to include the degradation rate of the respective components in order to predict lifetime performance. We want to understand failure modes and their effect on reliability and lifetime, and devise ways to avoid them as much as possible. Further, we want to establish an accurate determination of the performance by introducing and validating appropriate measurements of the input and output power. Finally, we want to implement data analysis tools to establish a system that lets us monitor performance and compare it to model-based expectations.  

The aim is to contribute to the co-simulation environment that allows to achieve the above described project targets. The co-simulation environment should in the first place allows to generate the boundary conditions for the degradation models in the DAPPER project and should in the last stage of the PhD be coupled to electricity grid simulations to see to what extent BIPV affects the grid stability.

The research will be based on past and current research at the Building Physics and Sustainable Design Section and EnergyVille and will be in collaboration with researchers from CentraleSupélec of the University of Paris-Saclay (France).