Industrialization of Water Flow Glazing facades by means of modular units

Abstract

Water Flow Glazing façade is a new and disruptive technology based on variable heating/ cooling glazed modules, which enables cost efficient nZEB with glass façade. These modules allow getting maximum transparency for full utilization of daylight in buildings while achieving savings on lighting and thermal energy for nZEB. The industrialization of Water Flow Glazing facades through modular units aims to reduce the complexity of the system encapsulating the components. Hence, cost reduction potentials in building construction are also evaluated. This article treats a full description of the Water Flow Glazing modular unit, based on its three main elements: glazing, circulator, and aluminum frame. The glazing comprises different layers and interfaces according to determined spectral and thermal properties. The circulator is a key element that allows the circulation of water inside the glazing chamber in a closed circuit, exchanging the temperature between indoors and outdoors. Finally, the aluminum frame that encloses the secondary circuit is a frame-in-frame system, which provides the structural stability and easy installation. The result is an active plug-in WFG modular unit, easy to install and operate. Each module is connected to the cloud through a wireless sensor, in charge of monitoring and controlling the main variables and parameters. The dimension of the module is configurable according to the architectural project.