2024 - BrightNest

Natural disasters such as typhoons, volcano eruptions, and earthquakes in the Philippines cause significant devastation, causing many Filipinos to lose their homes, support, and even their lives. Many are forced to evacuate into public schools, living in tight conditions. Prefabricated housing, which is quick, affordable, durable, and adaptable, can help meet the immediate housing demands of disaster evacuees. These houses provide a sense of stability and resilience due to their quick assembly, low cost, high-quality construction, adaptability, sustainability, and simplicity of movement. These creative housing options help and encourage those impacted by catastrophes while communities work to rebuild and recover, providing a concrete path towards regeneration and restoration.

Three primary materials contribute to this planned prefab home, which makes use of daylight to assist store energy for nighttime lighting and help with the overall house sustenance.

TRANSPARENT SOLAR PANELS

Transparent solar panels, intended for small-scale applications, have a number of positive aspects that make them the perfect choice for urban locations with limited room for conventional solar panels. It can contribute to electricity production without sacrificing space and aesthetics. Furthermore, there are alternatives for how these panels may be positioned because the sun’s angle relative to the surface is not really an essential factor. These are also waterproof, which increases their toughness and environmental compatibility. When solar glass is incorporated into a home, it performs regular architectural responsibilities in addition to producing electricity. To further increase their adaptability and simplicity of use in a variety of applications, the transparent solar cells are lightweight, even before being applied to glass.

COMPOSITE FRAMING

With its superior resistance to weathering, rotting, dampness, and insect damage, composite window framing outlasts traditional wood frames in terms of longevity. They offer thermal insulation, which lowers energy costs while enhancing interior comfort and energy efficiency. Composite frames also require less upkeep—frequent painting or sealing is not necessary, and they are simple to clean. Because of their aesthetic adaptability, they may be used in a variety of architectural styles by simulating the look of real wood or other materials. Great strength and stability are ensured by the mix of materials, which also helps to resist swelling, cracking, and warping.

CAPIZ SHELLS

Using Capiz shells as roof windows lets natural light enter an area while maintaining privacy, since its translucency diffuses sunlight and decreases illumination, resulting in a more pleasant interior atmosphere. Capiz windows also aid with thermal management by screening the intensity of sunlight, which helps keep indoor temperatures lower in hot areas. Furthermore, Capiz shell windows give a decorative aspect to structures by featuring a variety of forms and patterns that improve architectural elegance. Incorporating these windows also demonstrates a link to Filipino cultural history, since it preserves traditional building techniques and promotes local workmanship.

ENERGY STORAGE

Lithium-ion batteries, which were used as clear solar panels’ energy storage, are now able to sustain the nighttime lighting, making them an ideal option for energy storage in this prefabricated home. It is the standard method for storing solar energy in homes. It functions by pumping solar energy into the batteries, which then store the energy through a chemical process in the battery component and release it again when needed. It will take one to five days for a typical solar battery storage to store the solar energy that has been accumulated.

ESTIMATED ENERGY STORAGE

The fundamental formula for calculating the energy output (𝐸) of a solar panel is:

𝐸 = Efficiency × Solar Irradiance × Sunlight Hours × Area

Where:
Efficiency is the percentage of sunlight that the panel can convert into usable electricity. (average 0.05 for 5% efficiency).
Sunlight Hours is the number of peak sunlight hours (5 hours, the average in the Philippines).
Area is the surface area of the panel in square meters (4 m² allotted at the roof).
Solar Irradiance is the average solar power received per unit area (typically 1,000 watts per square meter (W/m²) under standard test conditions).

5% Efficiency
E = 0.05 × 5 hours × 4 m2 × 1,000 W/m2
E = 0.05 × 5 x 4 × 1,000
E = 1000 Wh or 1 kWh

The panel could produce 1000 watt-hours (Wh) of energy…

…enough to cover electricity for nighttime lighting as a typical LED light bulb uses about 10 Wh:
2 LED light bulbs x 10 Wh x 10 hrs (estimate) = 200 Wh

…and the remaining unused Wh may be allotted for charging devices as regular phone charger consumes 5W an hour and fully charges from 0 to 100 within 3 hours:
1 regular device x 5 Wh x 3 hrs (estimate) = 15 Wh