How to Assess: BIPV Throughout the Lifecycle

Book chapter, 2026

Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPVs) play a crucial role in reducing the environmental impact of buildings and advancing urban sustainability. However, their lifecycle, from production and installation to operation, replacement, and end of life, presents significant environmental trade-offs. This chapter explores the key challenges in assessing BIPVs and emphasizes the need for a comprehensive lifecycle assessment (LCA) approach that considers embodied emissions, operational benefits, and end-of-life strategies. Key factors such as PV panel selection, production location, and installation context are examined to highlight their influence on environmental performance. The chapter also discusses solutions, including high-resolution localized databases, a visual curve for balancing embodied and operational impacts, and environmental payback time analysis. Through case studies comparing various BIPV technologies and installation scenarios, the research provides insights into optimizing panel selection and deployment according to urban contexts and grid emissions. The results show that implementing BIPV is a regional decision driven by factors such as the local grid mix, building orientation, the choice of PV technology, and its efficiency. The results also show that the carbon embodied in the PV panels is a critical parameter that strongly influences the system’s overall payback time. Finally, future research directions focus on end-of-life strategies, circularity, and the regionalization of LCA data to improve decision-making for sustainable BIPV implementation.