RENEWABLE TECHNOLOGIES


IMPROVING ENERGY MANAGEMENT IN COMMERCIAL AND


RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES Despite numerous ways to reduce a building’s energy


consumption, it is nearly impossible to completely eliminate energy demand. Frank Bakker, product manager – Smart


Energy Management, SolarEdge, examines how a building can become energy independent


B


uildings are an integral part of our lives. But as the world moves towards sustainability


and energy independence, so too is building architecture beginning to change to incorporate these values. More frequently we are seeing net-zero buildings and green building rating systems, such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). In parallel, commercial buildings and homes are becoming smarter. This has opened the way towards managing energy in a more efficient manner. One of the ways to better manage energy is to


design buildings that require less energy – for example, by using passive ventilation techniques, passive solar energy, double/triple pane glass and thermal mass material, so that the requirement for HVAC units is reduced and sometimes even eliminated. Other areas that can decrease the energy requirements of a building include energy-efficient lighting, passive lighting, water conservation, and more. Yet, no matter how much a home or a commercial building is able to reduce


its energy requirements, it is nearly impossible to completely eliminate energy demand. The building can, however, become its own energy generator.


SOLAR POWER One of the most promising aspects of solar energy is that it is designed to be a distributed power source; and almost anybody with a roof has the potential to install their very own energy generation system. For commercial buildings with large rooftops, as well as homes, adding a photovoltaic (PV) system can be an excellent way to produce the amount of energy that is consumed on-site. For high-rise office buildings and apartment buildings this can, however, be more difficult. As part of its green building initiative, for


example, the University of Technology Vienna (TU Wien) renovated its former chemistry building with the goal of becoming the first energy-plus commercial high-rise building. This was a lofty goal as high-rises are particularly challenging for


Frank Bakker


PV to meet energy demand since roof space is limited compared to energy consumption. To overcome this challenge, innovative design planning was required, and a building-integrated system was conceived. Leveraging SolarEdge’s design flexibility was fundamental in increasing system production and size by allowing the entire building’s surface to be covered in solar modules, while also optimising each individual panel. At the time of completion, the system was


thought to be Austria’s largest Integrated PV site. The direct environmental benefits of the PV system were calculated to be equal to


>54,000 kg of CO2 emissions saved, which is the equivalent of nearly 200 trees planted or nearly 420,000 lightbulbs powered for a day. Adding solar energy to a building’s energy mix


is a crucial aspect in making a building more energy independent. However, it is only the first step. The next step is improving the management of that energy in order to increase self- consumption. This is because energy usage does not always align with the energy generation of a PV system. As such, there are two ways that the energy can be managed to overcome this inconsistency. The first technique is energy storage and the second is consumption shifting. Energy storage is an essential part of smart


energy management as it stores energy when it is produced for consumption at a later time instead of either limiting energy production or feeding it into the grid. With PV plus storage systems, the inverter is responsible for managing battery charge and discharge patterns to meet consumption needs and reduce the amount of power purchased from the grid. The graphs on the opposite page show how energy storage is able to increase self-consumption and energy independence. Shifting energy consumption can also increase


SolarEdge’s design flexibility enabled TU Wien to create what is believed to be the first energy-plus commercial high-rise building 16 ENERGY MANAGEMENT - Summer 2022


self-consumption. This technique combines the technology of smart buildings with PV energy and, by merging these, smart energy management


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