AI-enabled toward zero-emission buildings and clean mobility: PV–BIPV and battery storage integration: a case study of Diyala, Iraq

Iraqi buildings continue to rely heavily on fossil fuels, which raises carbon emissions and energy costs. To address this knowledge gap, the primary objective of the present study is to assess the techno-economic and environmental performance of solar energy retrofitting for a two-story mixed-use building in the eastern Iraqi province of Diyala, utilizing ERA5 reanalysis data for the first time. To this aim, three retrofit scenarios are considered ((1) the baseline scenario (BS) with no renewable systems, (2) the second scenario (SS) with a rooftop photovoltaic (PV) system, and (3) the third scenario (TS) combining rooftop PV, building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) glazing and a 30 mm layer of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) insulation). The simulations were conducted with and without battery storage (103.2 kWh capacity) to demonstrate grid independence and energy self-sufficiency. The findings demonstrate that the TS scenario achieved net-zero or carbon-positive operation, as evidenced by the reduction of annual CO₂ emissions from 39,122 kg (BS) to –9,257 kg (TS), which represents net export of renewable energy to the grid. Economically, SPP ranged from 3.2 to 5.4 years without a battery and from 10 to 14 years with one, and LCOE ranged from 0.038 to 0.072 USD/kWh, demonstrating long-term viability. Furthermore, 90–120 electric vehicles might be charged each month using the extra daylight energy, encouraging sustainable mobility. This study shows that it is possible to create zero-emission buildings that use integrated PV and BIPV systems to allow EV charging, improve grid stability, and lower CO₂ emissions all at once. Besides, the innovative potential of integrated PV-BIPV-battery systems for zero-emission buildings to decarbonize Iraq’s urban energy infrastructure is demonstrated in this study.