Design and Development of a Hybrid Low-Emissivity and Thermoelectric Window Glazing Systems: A Systematic Review

Window glazing is a prominent and essential feature in modern architectural building design, providing ambient natural daylighting and visual connectivity to the outside environment. Traditional and Conventional glazing systems often act as the weakest thermal link in a building sector, as they have resulted in massive thermal transmittance alongside excessive solar heat gain in warmer climates and substantial conductive heat loss during winter periods. These problems significantly increase reliance on heating and cooling systems while compromising indoor thermal comfort and undermining overall building energy efficiency.

This study focus on the design and development of a hybrid window system equipped with low-emissivity (Low-E) coatings and packet of thermoelectric generators (TEG) to simultaneously minimize the transfer of Heat and produce electricity. The proposed window system integrates with a double-glazed window that features a specialized low-E coating to reflect infrared radiation and reduce thermal transmittance.TEG embedded within the window assembly exploits the temperature gradient between the interior and exterior environments. While facilitating a continuous energy supply and a prominent building energy supply.

The proposed system integrates comprehensive modeling and prototype testing to measure the continuous low-grade energy harvesting under actual solar and ambient conditions. Experimental performance assessment shows that the hybrid architecture minimizes thermal heat loss by approximately 30% and generates a peak power output of 2W/m2, effectively transitioning the system from a passive insulator into an active micro-power generator compared to conventional double-glazed alternatives.

The proposed hybrid window glazing technique offers a synergistic, sustainable, and dual-functional solution for advanced building architectures and solar pond systems. while contributing to performance enhancement and the generation of electrical energy.