From the category archives:

Architecture

Efficient Building In Seattle Requires No AC

April 10, 2008

This new building in Seattle by Weber + Thompson requires no air conditioning. To achieve this feat, the architects made use of numerous passive cooling elements throughout the building. Passive cooling means no electricity or other fuel is needed — instead strategic shading and orientation is used, rather than high-tech gadgetry.

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Leading-Edge Green Complex For Singapore

April 8, 2008

Architecture firm Foster + Partners won an international competition to design a green complex that will fill an entire city block in downtown Singapore. This complex will be on the leading edge of green design. It will incorporate arrays of solar cells on the buildings’ facades. Ribbon-like canopies (also covered with thin-film solar cells) [...]

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Green Towers In Malaysia Modeled After Fleet Of Ships

March 26, 2008

These unusual, onion-shaped towers are designed for Precinct 4, or the Putrajaya waterfront in Malaysia (30 kilometers south of Kuala Kumpur). The design, by Studio Nicoletti Associati, was inspired by ship sails and traditional Islamic architecture.

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Innovative Tower To Feature Atrium Of Wind Turbines

March 20, 2008

The “Clean Technology Tower” is a highly efficient building which will be constructed in Chicago. The tower will have wind turbines positioned at the corners of the building, to capture wind at its highest velocity as it accelerates around the tower. At the apex, where wind speeds are at a maximum, a domed double roof [...]

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Stunning Solar Building Will Generate More Power Than It Needs

March 14, 2008

The Masdar Headquarters building will produce more power than it needs (an energy positive building). In fact, the solar roof (one of the largest in the world) will be constructed first, and it will power the construction of the rest of the building. The video link on this page has a great view of [...]

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Chinese Design Winner: High-Rise With Vertical Hydroponics

March 6, 2008

This apartment high-rise concept won a sustainable housing award recently in China. It integrates a vertical greenhouse into the high-rise. Designed by Knafo Klimor Architects, the “agro-housing” concept allows the residents to produce their own food, reducing commuting needs and providing a green neighbourhood. The greenhouse is a multi-floor structure for cultivation of crops such [...]

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Largest Modular Green Roof Installed: 2.3 Acres

February 7, 2008

The largest modular green roo, has been installed on top of the new “Court at Upper Providence” shopping center in Pennsylvania. The 2.3 acres green roof was constructed with GreenGrid modules. These modules are made with recycled plastic, and they contain small but hardly plants like sedums.

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The Largest Building In The World To Be Green

January 22, 2008

Foster + Partners have just been granted preliminary permission to start construction on this volcano-shaped superstructure in Moscow, which will be dubbed “Crystal Island”. In terms of efficiency monolithic buildings like this seem unnecessary, but the proposed dimensions are amazing: it will be 1,500 foot tall with 26,909,776 foot squared of floor space, that’s enough [...]

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The “Energy Plus” Building Produces All Its Own Power

January 22, 2008

The “Energy Plus” office building, to be located outside of Paris, is designed to produce all its own energy for heating, lighting and air conditioning. This zero-energy building, according to the designers, will be the greenest office building ever created. It will accomplish this by having more solar panels on its roof than any other [...]

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Huge “Air Tree” Structure Produces Its Own Power and Oxygen

January 16, 2008

In Madrid, Spain they are currently building a huge structure called an “Air Tree” or “Eco Boulevard de Vallecas”. The Tree was created by Urban Ecosystem to be a social center, and to improve the surrounding environment. The structure is also completely self-sufficient, generating all its own power with solar cells. Any surplus energy is [...]

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26-Acre Green Complex Planned For New York

December 14, 2007

The Hudson Yards is a huge swath of land located on the Far West Side of Manhattan. The land, which is the largest undeveloped site left in Manhattan, is owned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Now, five teams of architects are in the running to develop a 26-acre site in a sustainable way. Pictured here [...]

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A Green Spaceport?

December 4, 2007

 
Discover reports that, starting in 2009, tourists with deep pockets will be able to enjoy something fewer than 500 people have been lucky enough to experience—spaceflight. For $200,000, if all goes well, they can orbit for two and a half hours in Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo. But the port for landing and takeoff—Spaceport America in New [...]

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The Wave Tower: A Green “Seascraper”

December 4, 2007

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Designed for the waterfront in downtown Dubai, this “Wave Tower” will be located right on the water. A large undulating plane creates a bridge to the base of the tower, then folds upwards to create one of the twisting silk-screened glass sides of the structure. The “seascraper” is designed to be a green building. Interior [...]

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Nightclub Illuminated With 100% LED Light

November 6, 2007

The Barcode nightclub was built in a disused brick Victorian railway arch in Vauxhall, south London. The entire nightclub is illuminated using only LED lights, and the sound system is also energy efficient. The architect, Woods Bagot claims that the system consumes “less electricity than the power used to boil a kettle”. If they could [...]

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76-Acre CityCenter Project in Vegas Aims To Be Green

August 13, 2007

The MGM CityCenter is a $7 billion project under development on the Las Vegas Strip. The 76-acre complex is the largest green building project in the U.S. The designers actually hope to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for this project. But when the first hotel guests stream through the lobby [...]

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The PowerPod: A Green Home That Arrives On A Truck

August 8, 2007

The PowerPod is a modular home that incorporates many green design elements, including a solar butterfly roof that collects rainwater and includes an active solar array for electricity and hot water. Designed by Lawrence, Massachusetts based PowerHouse Enterprises, the PowerPod can be transported on two trailers to your site for assembly. Measuring just 480 square [...]

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Apartment Tower To Feature Integrated Wind Turbines

July 30, 2007

This 42-story apartment tower, under construction at Elephant and Castle in London, will feature a roof with an array of integrated wind turbines. The three turbines are each nine meters in diameter and are design to provide power the building’s lighting systems.

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The Greenest Skyscraper In India?

July 29, 2007

The India Tower is a 60-story skyscraper in Mumbai that could be the greenest in India. The developer is aiming to get a LEED gold rating for the project. The tower’s unusual rotated design was created by FXFOWLE architects. Each rotated section of the tower has a different use: a retail section, a Park Hyatt [...]

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Very Efficient Modular Home: mkLotus

July 17, 2007
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Manitoba Hydro Tower: 60% Energy Savings, 100% Fresh Air, Maximum Daylight

July 15, 2007

The new head offices for Manitoba Hydro, in downtown Winnipeg, will be a model for extreme climate design. Winnipeg is one of the coldest large cities in the world. Temperatures vary 100 degrees over a year. The design of the 700,000 ft² office tower is targeting a 60%+ reduction in energy consumption, through the use [...]

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