After completing CEE176A Energy Efficient Building, I really want to design a “sustainable” project. The building can consume a lot of energy (water, electricity, energy embedded in material), and producing numerous waste. At the end of day, the cost of owning a house or commercial building would be a burden. Therefore, my first objective is to control the overall cost (including future costs, such as electricity, water etc), by powering everything with renewable energy (Lecture idea below from CEE176A).
- Figure 1. Self-sustainable building theory (CEE176A)
- Figure 2. Sun tempering building to control temeprature and infiltration (CEE176A)
- Figure 3. Function of overhang and different glazing window (CEE176A)
In addition, the building material should also be considered using energy-efficient insulation to prevent heat transfer and economic considerations. The building ventilation system (infiltration) also contributes to stable indoor temperature. Based on those sustainable parameters, I will think the aesthetic perspective.
- Figure 4. Rainwater utilization for building
I also would like to apply the “sponge city” theory to my project. By setting up a rainwater collection system for my building, the rainwater can be collected to storage or reused by the building system (flushing the toilet, watering the plants, indoor temperature control, and reprocessing for drinking etc). However, such a collection system is highly restricted by the climate location, and the PV system is also limited in its geographic location. The same principle examples include wind powering buildings, geothermal, and biomass. Even though my ultimate idea is to transfer the building system as a small ecosystem with a certain level of self-sustainability, we depend on the ecosystem, and the building is just a relatively small one. There are some of my favorite sustainable building aesthetic looking below. However, sustainable buildings are not always necessarily decorated with “green”. My idea about green is to reduce consumption and pollution and design its looking simultaneously. It also needs to be smart, and a building is like an organism that can adjust and adapt the environment for us. Overall, I would like to design energy saving, sustainable, smart, and creative-looking built environment.
- Figure 5. “Green” building aesthetic perspective
- Figure 6. Smart building definition