Energy Self Sufficiency of a Tall Building with BIPV

This study is to test the reality of the big dream of zero energy skyscrapers. The current state of energy demands of high-rise buildings was investigated. The amount of solar energy that can be harnessed from PV panels installed on the roof and the south façade of a Seagram-size test-bed building in New York was estimated. Comparing the quantities of solar energy produced from and the energy demand of the test-bed building, the energy self-sufficiency of the building was analyzed. It was found that, with the current solar PV technology, building integrated PV systems can meet of about 4.2% of the building ’ s energy demand and 7.7% of its electricity demand. From this study, it was concluded that significant reduction in energy demand is a prerequisite for attaining zero energy large-scale buildings.