The End Is Coming
In the world of advanced technology it is not at all uncommon for two separate streams of development to suddenly collide one day with a single survivor emerging from the dust.
Do you remember the BETA disc and VHS tape collision? Both were cutting edge innovations trying to accomplish the same thing--an affordable storage and replay medium for movies you could watch at home--but they approached the goal from two very different paths. One day they collided in the marketplace and VHS won the day--for a generation at least, which is a very long time in tech time.
In the world of mechanical heating and cooling systems there is a similar convergence about to happen. For the last thirty years an enormous amount of research and development in refrigerant compressor technology has resulted in some wonderfully efficient water source and ground source heat pumps. Although the systems are expensive to install when compared to conventional and less efficient HVAC they have been growing rapidly in popularity as more people realize they can save some serious cash in the long run by lowering their energy consumption through heat pump technology.
But, at the same time as the heat pump movement has been gaining inertia world wide as an efficient answer to heat/cool issues, there has been another technology approaching the same issue from a different angle. And its angle has set it on a direct collision course with compressor driven heat pumps.
It's known as solar thermal cooling (STC). The name might sound like an oxymoron, Solar (sun) Thermal (heat) Cooling, but anyone with a camping trailer or RV with a propane fridge is living proof that the idea works. Long before electricity mankind was using heat to create ice through a mechanism known as absorption chilling. In the early units, and even today's propane camping fridges, ammonia is the refrigerant medium. Today however lithium bromide is the refrigerant of choice and its efficiency, expressed as C.O.P (coefficient of performance) is impressive.
The first large commercial installation I know of was the Hotel New Otani in Tokyo Japan 1995. Then came the Audubon Environmental Center in Los Angeles. And now Smith & Gill Architects of Chicago have been awarded a gazillion dollar contract to build the largest solar thermally cooled building in the world, the Masdar Headquarters in Abu Dhabi UAE. Not only will it be solar cooled (and heated if necessary) it will also be the worlds first large scale "net positive" building, generating more energy than it consumes.
The success of the Masdar building will undoubtedly have a profound effect on future trends in building architecture and engineering, including HVAC systems engineering. And the lessons being learned right now about absorption technology will undoubtedly one day result in the compressor driven heat pump industry experiencing at least a hip check into the boards on the way to the goal, especially in cooling dominant markets.
It reminds me of something Albert Bicol, that bright young engineer at Cobalt, told me so matter of factly over coffee during a heat pump conference in 2005. "We already know how to engineer buildings without the need for mechancially driven HVAC systems. Its only a matter of time before heat pumps aren't needed." But then Albert lives in Vancouver. What about the frozen chosen in the prairies right through to Ontario? We spend most of our winter in the dark sipping Tim Hortons or something stronger trying to keep from freezing. Somehow the benefits of solar thermal slips on the ice out here. But no doubt it will have its place. Oh and about that loser the BETA disc? It had a baby called DVD and it replaced VHS before it could walk.
The Masdar UAE initiative
The headquarters will be the world's first large-scale, mixed-use "positive energy" building, producing more energy than it consumes. In addition to being the location of Masdar Headquarters, the building will accommodate private residences and 'early bird' businesses starting up in the city.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of Masdar, said AS+GG is internationally recognized for high-performance, energy-efficient and sustainable architecture. "We know Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture share our vision for Masdar's headquarters. This building is at the heart of Masdar City, and its net positive energy design and new innovations will reflect our mission of developing sustainable future energy solutions."
AS+GG teamed with Chicago-based MEP engineers Environmental Systems Design and structural engineers Thornton Tomasetti on the design, which includes numerous systems that will generate a surplus of the building's energy, eliminate carbon emissions and reduce liquid and solid waste. The complex will utilize sustainable materials and feature integrated wind turbines, outdoor air quality monitors and one of the world's largest building-integrated solar energy arrays. Compared with typical mixed-use buildings of the same size, the Headquarters will consume 70% less water.
"In line with the Abu Dhabi 2030 Development Plan, Masdar is choosing to emphasize sustainability over height. We hope and expect this will set a new direction for worldwide competition in sustainable design," Dr. Al Jaber continued.
In addition to being the first mixed-use net positive energy building in the world, AS+GG's Masdar Headquarters will:
- Be the lowest energy consumer per square meter for a modern class A office building in an extremely hot and humid climate
- Feature one of the world's largest building-integrated photovoltaic arrays
- Employ the largest solar thermal driven cooling and dehumidification system
- Be the first building in history to generate power for its own assembly, through development of its solar roof pier before the underlying complex
"We're thrilled to be working on a project of this importance and magnitude. Masdar Headquarters is one of the most significant developments of our time,' said Adrian Smith, partner, AS+GG. "As a positive energy complex, the project will have a far-reaching influence on the buildings of tomorrow."
"Masdar Headquarters will set a new paradigm for the way buildings are designed, constructed and inhabited," said Gordon Gill, partner, AS+GG. "The project represents the perfect integration of architecture and engineering, resulting in a dynamic, inviting building that outperforms any other structure of its type in the world."
Construction of Masdar City commenced with a formal ground-breaking ceremony on February 9, 2008. The City will be constructed over seven phases and is due to be completed by 2016. Masdar's headquarters is part of phase one and will be completed by the end of 2010.
The design competition for Masdar's headquarters was managed by the Louis Berger Group and began with a field of 159 participants, which was narrowed down to 15 architecture and design firms. The criteria for selection of the 15 included building functionality, water and wastewater efficiency, indoor environmental quality, zero carbon emission, carbon footprint reduction and firm experience. Four global leaders in sustainable architecture and design were then chosen to submit final proposals.
A global jury of seven world renowned design and urban planning experts chose AS+GG's design from the finalists. The jury consisted of:
- A. Hashim Sarkis -- Aga Khan Professor of Landscape, Architecture and Urbanism in Muslim Societies in the Department of Urban Planning & Design at Harvard's Graduate School of Design (Cambridge, MA)
- Dennis A. Andrejko -- Associate Professor at the University of Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning (Buffalo, NY)
- Greg Mella, AIA, LEED AP -- Principal at SmithGroup (Washington, D.C.)
- Jean-Marie Charpentier -- Architect for Maison Mozart (Paris)
- Dr. Hans-Rudolf Schalcher -- Professor at the Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction (Zurich), where he is also the Head of Technical Competence Center and Member of the Management Board; Chair of the Planning and Management in Construction for the Institute for Construction Engineering and Management at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (Zurich)
- John Quale -- Assistant Professor at the University of Virginia's School of Architecture (Charlottesville, VA)
- Volker Hartkopf -- Professor of Architecture at Carnegie Mellon University's Center for Building Performance and Diagnostics, The Robert L. Preger Intelligent Workplace; Director at CBPD (Pittsburgh, PA)
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