A two-year collaboration between LafargeHolcim Ltd. and Dresden, Germany-based Heliatek GmbH has netted a photovoltaic concrete façade product capable of generating double the amount of energy typical of roof-based solar panel arrays. At 60 percent of the exterior, the cladding has the potential to generate 30 percent of a 10-story building’s annual energy requirements. Unveiled at Batimat 2017 in Paris, it combines LafargeHolcim’s Ductal ultra-high performance concrete, suited to architectural applications in ½-in. or greater thickness; and, Heliatek’s flexible, ultra-light HeliaFilm, weighing 1 kilogram/square meter (2.2 lbs./10.75 sq. ft.) and produced in shades of blue, gray and green.
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