Solar power

Optimizing energy-efficient building renovation: Integrating double-skin façades with solar systems in the Mediterranean landscape

According to the European Environment Agency, 85–95 % of today’s buildings will still be standing in 2050. As a result, there is an urgent need to renovate existing buildings to reduce energy consumption and improve their energy performance >>> Barone, G., Vardopoulos, I., Attia, S., & Vassilliades, C. Energy Reports 12, 2933-2945 (2024) Recent related articles…

Solar farms a ‘blight on the landscape’? Research shows they can benefit wildlife

Solar farms a ‘blight on the landscape’? Research shows they can benefit wildlife

Liz Truss, the new UK prime minister, isn’t a fan of solar farms. In 2014, when she was environment secretary, she described rows of panels arranged in a field to capture energy from the sun as a “blight on the landscape”. Eight years later, as a candidate for the 2022 Conservative Party leadership election, she…

Evaluating solar-active shading solutions: a study of energy performance in Mediterranean residential architecture

The depletion of conventional fossil fuel supplies and the growing global population necessitate a significant reduction in energy use and harmful emissions. High sun radiation in the Mediterranean region increases summer overheating, and results in increasing energy expenditures and building emissions. But, this also presents an opportunity for solar energy systems, as building designers see…

New research from Swansea University shines a light on how solar power and farming can coexist

New research from Swansea University shines a light on how solar power and farming can coexist

Scientists from Swansea University have developed a new tool to help identify optimal photovoltaic (PV) materials capable of maximising crop growth while generating solar power. In a recent study published in Solar RRL, academics from the University’s Department of Physics have been exploring the effect of semi-transparent PV materials placed over crops – an exemplary…