Experimental performance characterization and modeling of photovoltaic-thermal systems for integration in high performance residential building

Building-integrated photovoltaics with thermal energy recovery (BIPV-T) convert the absorbed solar energy into both thermal and electrical energy simultaneously using the same roof or facade area while acting as a standard building envelope material. Thus, BIPV-T show great potential to be integrated in buildings with limited roof or facade area with good solar exposure or in buildings with aggressive energy performance targets such as net-zero.;Despite the aesthetic and dual-functionality attractiveness of this technology, the number of BIPV-T products and stand-alone photovoltaic with thermal energy recovery (PV-T) collectors remains limited. The slow market uptake of PV-T technology can be explained by the absence of performance characterization standards and product certification, the lack of information on their cost-benefit, the high cost, the absence of tools to estimate their yield and the lack of whole system solution sets. This thesis aims at contributing to removing some of the barriers to the market uptake of PV-T technology by increasing the knowledge on both its performance characterization and its true benefit focusing on systems using air as the heat recovery fluid.