Integrated energy performance of an innovative translucent photoluminescent building envelope for lighting energy storage

Abstract Novel, photoluminescent and translucent construction elements are considered for application on buildings’ envelope toward energy savings and avant-garde architectural expression. These elements allow natural light to pass through the envelope and charge the materials, which on their turn re-emit energy as visible light. By exploiting the intrinsic characteristics of these construction elements large amounts of energy could be saved in lighting applications. This work tackles the complex, dynamic behavior of photoluminescent materials by means of a novel, experimental and numerical methodology. Materials’ dynamic characteristics are firstly investigated by means of an in-lab experimental campaign. Secondly, coupled lighting and energy numerical simulations are carried out. Results show that translucent and photoluminescent envelope components could be able to reduce up to 40% building electricity consumption for lighting on an annual basis and depending on urban surroundings. In the best-case scenario, i.e. during the longest day of the year, the obtained electricity savings are around 80% for the photoluminescent–translucent envelope.