In the UAE, buildings consume more than 80% of the total electrical generation, where the cooling systems are responsible for approximately 70% of the buildings' peak electrical load. The government of Dubai initiated several efforts to improve building efficiency and move towards a more sustainable city. This paper benchmarks the different building codes in the UAE and the GCC, focusing on building envelopes, HVAC efficiency, and the application of renewable energy. Additionally, we compare requirements with the UAE early adopters of the Zero Energy Building concept. Despite having similar climate conditions and construction systems across the UAE, the green building regulations of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ras Al Khaimah have different threshold requirements. For example, the maximum thermal transmittance (u-value) of the exterior walls in Dubai is 0.57, 0.32 in Abu Dhabi, and 0.48 W/m 2 K in Ras al Khaimah. Constructed Nearly Zero Energy buildings have U-values that are substantially lower than the Dubai regulations, between 0.06 to 0.32 W/m 2 K. We also found differences in other envelope requirements, the share of renewables, and COP values for air conditioning systems. The differences between the codes and between the early adopters nZEB help us to identify opportunities for improvement and standardization of these regulations and define a path toward wider nZEB adoption in the Emirates.
This paper assesses the performance of photovoltaic (PV) technologies integrated into buildings in the desert climate and the factors that affect energy yield. Cadmium telluride (CdTe) and standard monocrystalline silicon (c-Si) modules were installed facing south, in the three more common tilt angles used in the Building Applied Photovoltaics (BAPV) and Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) applications at the Dubai latitude (90°, 25°, and 0°). We monitored the energy production, the temperature of the PV modules, irradiance on each tilt angle, and the meteorological parameters for a full year. We then calculated the performance ratio for the six modules to evaluate the different factors, including temperature and soiling losses, following IEC 61724-1. The 25° modules, usual PV rooftop angle, had the highest and more consistent energy yield throughout the year. Conversely, the energy yield of the 90° modules, typical angle for facades, vertical shading devices, and guardrails, had the lowest yield and showed wide variations. This is expected as the 90° angle is more affected by the seasonal changes of the solar altitude. The soiling losses on these modules were lower than 1%. However, at 0°, the soiling loss was more evident, with an average reduction of 10.79%. The c-Si module at 25° generated the highest normalized energy yield of 402.02 kW h/m 2 , which was 23.5% more than that of CdTe module with the same tilt angle.
This paper presents a test and validation research on the energy performance of photovoltaic solutions integrated as opaque, ventilated façades in the harsh desert climate of Dubai, UAE. We have assessed the performance of copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) and monocrystalline silicon (c-Si) modules in the three most suitable orientations for Dubai's buildings (south, east, and west), over one full year. Additionally, we investigated the effect of modules' temperature on the energy yield. The normalized energy yield of c-Si modules was continuously higher than the CIGS modules, across all orientations, with an average annual difference of 13.6%. Throughout the whole period, the south-oriented modules produced more energy than those in the east and west. During the period from October to February, they produced up to 48.5% more than the other orientations. The east and west façades, on the other hand, produced up to 40.9% more energy than the south in the period from April to August. Furthermore, although the annual irradiance on the west was only 1.7% lower than the east, the annual production of the west modules was more than 12% less. These modules start to receive direct solar irradiation in the afternoon when ambient temperatures reach their highest values, and after they accumulated heat during the morning.
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