| Work Detail |
A Belgian-Dutch research group has designed a photovoltaic noise barrier that is said to offer good performance in terms of energy production, driver safety and noise cancellation. Its payback time is estimated at between 6 and 10 years.
A Belgian-Dutch research team has developed a zigzag-designed photovoltaic noise barrier for applications along motorways and roads as well as on building facades. “Especially in densely populated areas such as Eindhoven, space for photovoltaic installations is limited and living comfort in districts close to motorways is under pressure,” Fallon Colberts, lead author of the research, explains to pv magazine . “ZigZag photovoltaic noise barriers are an excellent solution.”
The ZigZag design consists of mounting the solar modules facing the sun in a “zig” plane, while the “zag” plane increases the coupling of light to the underlying solar panel.
“As the solar panel is oriented towards the sun and not towards the driver, this design can limit unwanted reflections of the sun and traffic lights on the glass surface of the solar panel, contributing to driver safety,” the scientists explain, noting that the novel noise barrier also integrates anti-noise materials to reduce unwanted reflections from traffic noise. “In addition, driver safety can be increased by the aesthetic ‘zag’ of the construction by avoiding monotonous views.”
With support from Dutch startup Wallvision, the research group built a 4m x 4m demonstrator with a south-southwest orientation and two ZigZag configurations. It used eight solar modules supplied by Belgian manufacturer Soltech and fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensors to measure the temperature of the system. It also used noise-absorbing material supplied by German specialist Rockwool. The modules were deployed at a tilt angle of between 35 and 50 degrees.
Through a series of simulations and life cycle assessments (LCA), the researchers found that the proposed PV noise barrier has a payback period of 6 to 10 years. “The LCA studies, carried out by Helmo, revealed a low CO2 eq/kWh compared to electric mixes and a good trade-off between payback time and lifetime,” said Colberts. “In addition, the simulations showed that the energy performance can be very well simulated by their optimised energy performance framework. The latter could be of interest when designing and selecting locations for the installation of ZigZag PV noise barriers.”
The analysis also determined that the optimal tilt angle of the system should be between 20 and 40 degrees, which would ensure an adequate balance between performance and noise reduction. In terms of energy efficiency, however, no particular difference was observed when changing the tilt angle from 20 to 80 degrees.
The simulations also showed that, in general, a tilt angle of 50 degrees produces more energy in different seasons than a tilt angle of 35 degrees, especially in the summer months. “This is because with a higher tilt angle, the shading of the ZigZag upper covers is reduced,” the scientists explain. “The ZigZag PVNB demonstrator can generate an annual specific yield of up to 941 kWh/kWp at a tilt angle of 35 degrees and 1066 kWh/kWp at a tilt angle of 50 degrees.”
The system was presented in the study « Performance study and LCA of a ZigZag PV noise barrier: Towards mass-customization of IIPV applications » published in Applied Energy . The research team included scientists from the Zuyd University of Applied Sciences (Netherlands), as well as from the University of Hasselt and the Institut de Recherche des Instituts groupés de la Haute Ecole Mosane (Belgium).
“Wallvision is working on optimising its product to make commercialisation of ZigZag photovoltaic components that can be used for the construction of photovoltaic noise barriers a reality,” added Colberts. “Wallvision plans to carry out a pilot project in Eindhoven in the near future to bring ZigZag photovoltaic noise barriers closer to commercialisation.” |
