Use of smart materials in adaptive transparent façades for building envelopes: a review

This paper presents a systematic review of adaptive transparent building systems, focusing on their applications in energy efficiency, occupant comfort and environmental performance. Despite growing interest in these systems, significant challenges remain, including material performance variability, integration complexity and a lack of standardised evaluation protocols. Over 130 publications were analysed following clearly defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Studies were categorised based on material type, adaptive mechanism and performance outcomes. The review identifies key trends, knowledge gaps and methodological limitations in the current literature. This study contributes by providing a comprehensive, structured synthesis of adaptive transparent systems, offering insights for researchers and practitioners and outlining specific directions for future research.