The BASSE project (Building active steel skin) seeks to develop a building envelope considering biometric principles to make the building envelope act in a similar way to nature in the way that human skin is refrigerated by a fluid; blood. Energy will be harvested by a fluid which will be circulating through the steel skin of the façade and will be stored and managed to improve the efficiency of the building.

The prototype will be based on:

1. The integration of a heat exchanger system into a steel based envelope system such as sandwich panels (steel sheets with insulation), to act as an energy absorbent and therefore to actively and dynamically draw the energy gain from the skin.

1. Making the captured energy available for distribution into the building as thermal energy through the integrated heat pumping system. An intelligent mechanism will also be integrated into the system to control the temperature of the steel skin and to effectively manage and distribute the gained energy.

The project aims to develop an easy product that permits a quick, simple and rapid spread of the existing renewable technologies in order to achieve the ambitious international energy commitments in terms of energy savings.

The aim of the INNOVTEG project is to create nano-structured thermo-electric materials based on (low cost and abundant) sulphur with carefully controlled structure and properties. By doing this our consortium will create a step-change in the application of thermo-electric technologies for large-scale solar renewable applications in the EU by developing thermo-electric at a massively reduced cost (€5.20/kg).  

The technologies developed will be particularly suited to building integrated renewable systems. In so doing, the InnovTEG technology will offer greatly improved environmental performance due to improved reduced dependence on fossil fuels, reduced emissions (CO2, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and particulates) at a cost that is affordable to the end-user. The project results are expected to benefit other SMEs in the renewable energy, materials processing and electronics industry sectors. 

Bismuth Telluride has been at the core of commercial thermoelectric materials for low-grade energy and compact cooling applications since the 1950s. A new material is needed to disrupt the sustainability issues associated with Tellurium, InnovTEG takes a significant step towards this goal by bringing together an experienced and high-class consortium.

Aims 

• Create a very low-cost thermo-electric system suitable for building integration that can achieve an output of 30Wp/sq.m and a power generation cost of €533/kWp. 

• Generate €200m million business growth for its SMEs within a 5 year period creating more than 171 jobs. 

• Reduce CO2 emissions by 208,000 tonnes of CO2 per year in the 5-years post-project. 

The project aims to develop an open inter-seasonal thermochemical energy storage system for use within a large industrial building.  The system will store low-grade heat from a transpired solar collector using a thermochemical medium stored within a suitable containment system.  When required, heat will be generated from the storage system through the use of moisture-laden air which will pass over the storage medium. The heat released will be distributed through the nominated building via a heating and ventilation system (HVAC).  The key elements of the project will include:  The selection and development of suitable thermochemical materials on a small scale, and, the scaling up of the technology to be incorporated into a nominated industrial building for monitoring purposes. 

Project end date: December 2015 

Aims 

• Development of a suitable thermochemical adsorbent material(s) 

• Use of low grade renewable heat from a transpired solar collector to charge the system. 

• Scaling up the technology to an actual industrial building to provide a renewable heat source, when required, that satisfies the HVAC requirements of the building. 

The project aims to develop a high-performance thermochemical energy storage pumping pipe (TESPP) system using off-peak power and renewable sources to minimise energy demands from fossil fuels. The TESPP system is based on the application of a unique adsorption heat pipe which incorporates a reactor section (adsorbent bed) and condenser/evaporator refrigerant section. 

This configuration would improve the heat transfer and enhance the overall performance of the energy storage system. The heat pipes can be charged using a vapour compression heat pump. Off-peak power electricity and renewable energy sources such as wind can be used to power the heat pump. Ambient or ground energy can be used as a heat source for the heat pump. A range of adsorbent materials including zeolites and nano-composite adsorbent materials and water can be used the working media. 

Whilst the development of TESPP is technology-driven from an advanced materials perspective, the delivery of a viable TESPP also synergistically addresses challenge-led issues. 

Aims 

• Advanced material developments, delivering cost-effective and compact thermal stores. 

• Integration of adsorbents into porous structural host matrices to enable high Specific Storage Density (SSD) materials. 

• Synthesis, metrology and manufacture of novel functional nano-composite adsorbent materials to ensure cyclability and thermal stability. Enabling advanced nanostructured adsorbent materials underpins the viability and continued development of renewable energy generation, storage and dissipation systems