Architectural Simulation of Hybrid Energy Harvesting: A Design Experiment in Lanzarote Island

Abstract

This study conducts research on an architectural design based on energy harvesting technology. The research subject is a pergola-style structure to be built in a square in Arrecife, the Spanish territory of Lanzarote Island. The architectural design based on the energy harvesting technology developed in this research utilizes solar energy. To install a solar panel on the roof of the pergola, the optimal tilt angle from January to December was derived by using a function that considered the latitude and solar declination value of the study site, and the amount of renewable energy generation was calculated. The architectural design based on energy harvesting also utilizes wind power. To transform wind power into renewable energy, piezoelectric materials that trigger renewable energy with the micro-vibrations generated by wind power are applied to the architectural design. The amount of energy generation was calculated considering the wind power and wind direction in the location where the pergola should be built; in addition, this calculation used information from prior studies on piezoelectric materials. This article is significant, as it has developed an architectural design where hybrid energy harvesting technology that utilizes two types of natural energy (solar and wind) is applied to a building façade. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.