Regardless, I enjoyed this guest lecture very much. They were such a cute “tag team” couple and had a lot of relevant case studies to offer us. I wish they were allowed the time to finish their entire presentation.

They began by emphasizing design with a focus toward “the design of a  more nuanced human experience of the built environment through the precise integration of the inestimable givens of architecture“, which they explained as elements like light, gravity, etc.

One way of analyzing and integrating these elements is through the perspective of a range of scales. This can refer to analysis on a site, local, state, and national level, but on a more poetic and theoretical level a “range of scales” can allude to the “notion of resonating within time”. In our modern world, we are faced with the confrontation between our new technologies and basic ancient knowledge and wisdom, and each method’s relationship to the planet and natural forces and the extremes between the two. We have become overly dependent on science and technologies and unfairly group another “older” method as out-date, old-fashioned, and ultimately unsuccessful. However, for example, ancient handheld sundials, which tell time per latitude simply through string and dates, are amazingly accurate and only make use of very basic knowledge of the passing of time and its relationship to the sun and location.

The sustainability movement of the 1960s, had a paramount impact on the human relationship with Earth. It was during this time period that Apollo’s mission produced the first full view of the Earth. This incredible photo sparked contrasting viewpoints. Some saw Earth as a “delicate object floating in space”  which led to a widespread epiphany of sorts that inspired the thought that the Earth “is all that we have”, leading of course to a new concern for the preservation of this delicate mass and a movement towards sustainability. Some, however, saw the photograph as a representation of the “amazing energetics of the earth“: the power of natural disasters, extremities in climate, and most importantly our human impacts made visible.

“A single molecule is one million times smaller than a grain of sand.”

In the 1980s, design focused on the consideration of scales by city (Urbanism and neighborhood interaction) versus site (on the project scale). However, very little thought was given to the extremes of the entire region or as small as the cellular basis of materials. The precision of science allows for the ability for design to think laterally and consider an enormous variety of scales.

I’m sure you’ve already seen this but, regardless, very relevant:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0

We have the technologies, now we just need to inspire the mindset. We need to:

• insist on the right of humanity and nature to co-exist
• recognize interdependence
• respect relationship between spirit and matter
• accept responsibility for the consequences of design
• create safe objects of long-term value
• eliminate the concept of waste
• rely on natural energy flows
• understand the limitation of design
• seek constant improvement by sharing knowledge

What I found to be most interesting was their allusion to (if I’m correct) our first reading for this class: “Cradle-to-Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things” by McDonough and Braungart. Having already read and analyzed the reading, it was much easier for me to follow along with their argument and enjoy the presentation.

They emphasized that WASTE = FOOD and suggested other sustainable societal strategies like the use of current solar income, celebration of diversity, and the anticipation of evolution in design. They suggested that instead of reducing our environmental impacts, design should focus on trying to create positive impact. How can we design things from the very beginning to result in positive impacts and positive effects. Hence, the Cradle-to-Grave design paradigm: TAKE – MAKE – WASTE. They discussed the relationship between biological metabolism and technological metabolism and how to avoid adverse impacts and produce a positive with both. In a Cradle-to-Grave design strategy, the outputs of technological metabolism would be designed to avoid contamination of the former.

At this point, they offered some guiding questions for inspiring design with a positive environmental impact:

• Is it a biological of technical nutrient?
• Are the materials recyclable and compostable?
• Do you have reverse logistics?
• Does your energy come from renewable sources?
• Is your water drinkable?
• Are you practicing social fairness?

Surprisingly, the first industries to adapt the Cradle-to-Grave design paradigm were those in commercial material and furniture production. On a broader scale, many countries on a global scale caught whiff of the new design strategy. The Netherlands, noted for their ground-breaking studies in sustainability and modern design, recently took on a project to create a natural barrier from the North sea, turning an inlet into a fresh sea. The Dutch do not romanticize nature, they understand how to create enormous projects at the scale of a country in the best interest of said country’s people. For centuries, the Netherlands has had major issues with the handling of water (North sea, rivers, storm quantity, and flooding) since the vast majority of the country lies below sea level. Recently, new technologies have allowed the country to define and monitor the water level to the meter throughout the country in order to provide safety, as well as sustainability, for its citizens. Considerations for future planning of the city include such suggestions as: making man-made islands in the sea to create a connection between the island community and downtown Amsterdam, creating the interconnection through public transit (via train). The natural processes of certain plants and microorganisms are utilized to clean the area and create a healthy habitat for not only the residents but also for the organisms in that environment.

Analysis vs. Synthesis

The design process that really led to the whole process of designing the house is that of Analysis vs. Synthesis. In order to create an interconnection between the two, you must maintain in your mind the discipline to switch between scales, in rapid progression. Analysis leads to synthesis and back to analysis, and so forth. This applies as well to design through the discipline of designing in section vs. plan, etc. It inspires discussion of how to take the intrinsic principle of nature to create design tools that shape form. What could a building be like if you make an instrument tied to universal scale, an instrument that reveals natural cycles occurring everyday in that environment? Hand-drawings and hand-calculation are both ancient methods can achieve this design as well as the use of newer technologies and tools. A good designer will be able to utilize both without becoming dependent on either. Hands-on design with sustainable projects allow for a better understand of theory and the tools and elements learned during the education process.

Design Optimization

No matter the scale, design optimization can be found in a lot of data-driven analysis as well as conceptual analysis. The goal is to reach the optimization point, which is easier to quantify in data because you can generate the accurate term: factors like cost-value and energy-performance, as well as, human factors vs. technological factors. The NSF EFRI SEED GRANT is an innovation grant created through the government to bring different disciplines together to solve sustainability and environmental issues. The application of this analysis promotes:

• designing, building, and testing prototypes based on predictive analysis
• comparing predictive modeling with actual performance
• testing optimizing variations on prototypes
• integrating occupant-based control strategies

Is it possible to power buildings by current sunlight? Is it possible to design a building that can purify their own waste water? Is it possible to build without compromising human or environmental heath, somewhere else or at some later time? Building can be used as a pedagogical, teaching tool to provide a platform upon which to redefine the relationship between design and the environment. We don’t get enough feedback, data and information from existing buildings, which are all key elements to allowing the develop of future design strategies and monitoring of the existing building.

The duo then concludes with a series of stimulating case studies that incorporate the above design strategies. The Oberlin green belt from the city of Oberlin emphasizes the production of local, organic food. It thinks through and incorporates the scale of systems of agricultural production of the city. Sustainability is considered a national security issue there, and provides a precedent for what we must move towards: the viability of our national security is completely dependent on looking at the scale of buildings in our community and the rippling effect of buildings in our community.

We are still at very early stages of the environmental design movement, but moving in the right direction. Living Building Challenge 2.0 is a new way of going beyond LEED, a system that has totally transformed the construction of our buildings and how contractors and builders think about buildings. It’s primary goal is to achieve net zero energy. It offers a prototype to design a whole new way of thinking about buildings and discovering a “high-level intention” of sustainable projects. However, although it offers a different viewpoint of considering design and offering certain issues to consider, it doesn’t offer a specific strategy to attack particular problems.

One of the Burke’s own project in California features a roof versus the building underneath . It follows the slope of a land blending into hill-side with very precise calibrations to views, framing a particular moment throughout its circulation. The tools we have at hand allow this to happen at such a calibrated way to allow for the combination of design principles (glazing type, wall performance, etc). The purpose of every aperture is questioned (view vs. function, ventilation uses, etc) and the effect of every view, North, South, East and West is considered. Like the Living Building Challenge, certain structural elements are integrated to pursue net-zero energy:

• clerestories allow for daylight and natural ventilation
• structural piers function not only structurally but also for energy-efficiency
• Red List materials (those prohibited on site in order to optimize sustainability) are avoided and the issue of availability and sourcing of materials is solved through an emphasis on locally-sourced materials
• water-collection basins are functional as well as providing a unique visual and auditory experience for the inhabitants

Wish I got to hear what else they had to offer!

At this point in my design, I was faced with the programmatic decision left open to us of the production field of the monks. I believed that integrating a vertical greenhouse into my urban environment would be able to take advantage of my solar exposure opportunities as well as alluding to both the existing juxtaposed High Line as well as the traditional concept of the “monastery courtyard”. What I was imagining, was the traditional elements of a monastery, the courtyard especially, turned inside out to maintain the aesthetic and visual qualities of traditional design while still being able to adapt to the urban environment.

What evolved, after many hours of research and analysis of hydroponic precedents, was a “double-skin” glass wall-like space in which the simple processes of hydroponics could be implemented. The two planes of glass allow for insulation during the winter as well as sun protection during the summer, as the growing plants within block the sun from fully penetrating the interior. Along the same lines, daylight would be able to transcend through the glass, creating an interesting and aesthetically-pleasing dappled light effect within. At the same time, the partial-obstruction of the plants would allow the interior spaces a higher level of privacy than a simple large window would allow, while still maintaining all the benefits of the daylight.

I implemented these “green” walls along the southern and eastern exposures and along important programmatic spaces, most importantly, open areas where the public would be able to experience the aesthetic benefits of the wall while also getting an idea of the inner-workings of the monk’s production. Continuing along my attempt to pursue passive design, I kept in mind designing natural ventilation wherever possible. The “green” walls feature a roughly half-foot gap at their base and top allowing for a certain level of clean airflow between the glass panes, which encourages plant-growth. Solar panels at the apex of both walls as well as above the cell clusters allow for another energy source to detract from the financial and environmental tax of traditional energy sources. Similar to this concept, I imagined that my Farmer’s Market, in which the monk’s would be able to sell their harvested crops to the public, would have a dialectic between the interior and the exterior. It parallels the dialectical personality of Manhattan weather and allows for the entire space to open itself during the hot, humid summers as well as closing itself off with glass panes during the winter, where the absorbed heat energy in the concrete sheet walls would aid the heating of the interior.

Despite my instructor’s insurances that finances should not be a restricting issue, I wanted to stay true to my desire to design passively in the attempt to create a financially- and environmentally-efficient structure that requires very little incoming materials and maintenance, of which the little bit would be simple enough for the monks to upkeep themselves. Along these lines, I sought to cut down on the expense and global-footprint that trucking nutrients and fertilizer would create by allowing the monks another mode of production. I implemented a “humanure” composting system that would allow for the production of nutrient-full fertilizer that can be added directly to the plants during their growth. The system is very basic and requires little more than water and time while, in turn, adds a unique and productive element to the greenhouse production process.

That said, I think that because I had been unconsciously so focused on implementing a systemic mindset and passive design into my work, I left the importance of the aesthetics by the wayside. However, I do not regret my decision. I am a hands-on learner, in its truest form. Not only did I learn and understand the concepts taught during this class, but I also made it part of my repertoire. I did so much research and readings outside of the class curriculum than any other class I have ever taken, and I did this completely willingly and even enjoyably. In fact, by the time the final assignment was delivered, I felt that I had already completed the majority of the work done on my own.

I made this my project, and I did so by taking risks and by applying the lessons I learned during this class. Struggling with the technicalities of these design elements took time away from the aesthetic design but it brought me so much closer to understanding and emphasizing sustainability in today’s architectural design.

I’m obviously going to take this topic to ridiculous levels so, if you can, please stick with me… there are actual facts amidst the sarcasm. Let’s see how my monks are doing, shall we?

With their urban, vertical greenhouse integrated nicely into their everyday routine, the monks (assuming they only eat vegetables 24/7…) have moved one big step closer to sustainability. However, where will the materials come from? Producing their own food avoids the high costs and gas emissions from importing food into the building, but where will everything else come from? Those essential nutrients? The energy to power the building? Well the energy question is for another upcoming post (solar panels), but what I can address are those nutrients…

Solution: composting.

Composting is defined as organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Essentially, composting processes requires simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting for the materials to break down from anywhere between 5 to 6 weeks or even more. Easy as that. Of course, composting has been modernized into a methodical, multi-step, closely monitored process with measured inputs or water, air and materials rich in carbon and nitrogen. Compost itself can be rich in nutrients and beneficial to the environment (when utilized properly) in many ways: as a soil conditioner, a fertilizer, as well as a natural pesticide for soil. It’s useful for erosion control, wetland construction, and as a natural landfill cover.

Successful composting requires four equally important elements: carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and water. Carbon provides energy (its oxidation can produce heat). Nitrogen aids in the production and reproduction of more oxidizing organisms (for the carbon). Oxygen, obviously, aids the oxidation process and therefore the decomposition process. And water, if used in the right amounts, maintains compost activity without causing anaerobic conditions.

So what does this have anything to do with keeping a sustainable monastery?

Monks are people too, and just like everyone else… all those vegetables they ate have to come out somewhere. Take a lesson from everyone’s favorite children’s novel and take into consideration that everyone poops!! If I’m housing 24 eating, working, sleeping Trappist monks then I have 24 people that also need to shit. You can do the math if you’d like, investigating the amount per day, month, year, etc. But the moral of the story is: in any living complex, there will be a lot of shit. Waste not.

“Humanure” is defined as a portmanteau neologism (blend of two theories to create a new one) designating human excrement (feces and urine) that is recycled via composting for agricultural or other purposes. The term was popularized in Joseph Jenkins’ 1994 book advocating the use of this organic soil amendment. Unlike traditional sewage, which is processed by waste-treatment facilities, “humanure” is the combination of feces and urine with paper and additional carbon material (like sawdust, for example). It does not require water or electricity and emits no odor.

A “composting toilet” is one that implements a “humanure” system. Human feces and urine have high percentages of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, carbon, and calcium. By disposing of feces and urine through this composting process, the nutrients contained in them are returned to the soil. Its efficacy parallels that of common store-bought fertilizers and manures. The process destroys pathogens of the raw waste both by extreme heat of the composting and the extended amount of time that it is allowed to decompose.

Ecological sanitation processes allow us to become more sustainable as a species in relation to the environment. If we implement this system, we can both take care of our bodies and their functions while preserving and sustaining our Earth. Instead of participating in our current system that wastes our drastically diminishing resources, we can be producing rich humus and fertilizer each day using our own natural digestive systems.

But let’s not focus too closely on feces, what about good old urine!?!?

Collecting urine, that magical yellow liquid we excrete from our bodies several times a day (or stereotypically more often if you’re a female, like myself), is a key step in recycling human nutrients.”People excrete far more of certain water-soluble plant nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) in urine than in feces“. These same nutrients are the major components of chemical fertilizers. Urine can be used directly as fertilizer (noted as an excellent plant fertilizer) or also through the composting process. It is typically sterile (although can become contaminated if left in contact with feces) and can be easily and safely reused. Unlike feces, urine does not attract disease-spreading flies, doesn’t contain some of the hard-core pathogens that shit has to deal with, and perhaps most importantly has far less odor. Collection can be as simple as pissing in a jar… or installing a urinal or urine-diverting composting toilet. At its simplest, this collection can be done in your own household and is safe to use without treatment. It really is so simple it sounds stupid. All you need is a 2 to 5 gallon bucket, fitted with a tight cover to prevent oxygen from turning the urine’s nitrogen into ammonia (the cause of bad smell and, more importantly, nitrogen loss). If not applied immediately, urine is also very easy to purify. All you have to do… is wait. Urine leaves the body fairly acidic, then the pH increases rapidly until pathogens are destroyed. The process takes somewhere from 15 days (warmer climates) to over 3 months (colder climates).

Composting and dry toilets use natural processes to turn shit… into a valuable soil amendment, using little to no water, and successfully destroying potential pathogens. Since its invention in 1939, Clivus Multrum composting toilet systems have been used in homes, parks, and commercial buildings as the sole method of treating toilet waste. The process is reliable, convenient, and safe and the results are both conservative and productive: water is conserved as a carriage medium and the fertilizer content in excreta is made available for reuse. Composting toilets use aerobic decomposition to slowly break down both urine and feces into stable compounds within the polyethylene composting unit.

“Clivus Multrum” is Latin for “inclined chamber”, which was inspired from its sloped design that separates urine from feces. As urine moves by gravity to the lowest point of the composting unit, bacterial action causes a chemical transformation that converts the chemically unstable components of urine (urea and ammonia), into a liquid end-product that is biologically and chemically stable and contains nutrients which are valuable for fertilizer. Due to a relatively small mass of organic matter in the composting unit, temperatures never exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit. A continuously operating fan pulls air down the toilet fixture and out through a vent stack creating a completely odorless bathroom at all times.

Implementing this system into a residential space helps to conserve fresh water (avoiding the usage of potable water required by the typical flush toilet), further prevents the pollution of ground water (by controlling the decomposition), reduces energy consumption and, therefore, greenhouse gas emissions associated with the transportation and processing of water. If handled according to local health regulations, the “humanure” compost can be successfully used to aid crop growth.

Let’s face it. The modern day sewer system has failed miserably. In fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. clean water infrastructure system a D- in 2007 (hey, at least we passed, right?). Aside from the fact that its costly and not very closely monitored, sewage systems that face overflows cause beach closures, spread illnesses to the public, and pollute the environment. This applies to places with a sewage treatment system, but the truth is most of the world does not have this luxury. Untreated sewage pollutes the local environment with a savage ferocity and is the source of illness and death for millions of people. 6,000 children die each day as a result of inadequate sanitation.

Conventional sanitation treatment systems (both sewer and septic systems) pollute by design; both systems mix excreta with a large amount of water, which discharges most of their useful nutrients. Sewers send excreta (mixed with toxic substances from industrial and residential waste) straight into oceans, bays, and rivers and septic systems indirectly pollute groundwater. This causes aquatic plant life to decay, removing oxygen from the water and destroying the habitat.

Both human feces and urine (which I will focus on later) have high percentages of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, carbon, and calcium. ”Humanure” is an ecological method of sanitation, that helps rather than hurts. If you compare our nutrient cycles, humans and plants are intrinsically similar. We eat plant foods and plants turn the nutrients we excrete back into themselves, and therefore into food. In the industrial world, this natural cycle has been severed and the benefits of the closed loop system has been reversed into that which furthers our issue of environmental pollution. “Humanure” recovers the closed loop and brings us back to a natural cycle of decomposition, and a closer relationship with plant life.

Ecological sanitation systems have already begun to be implemented in specific case studies outside our nation. China has been long familiar with the collection of “night soil” for fertilizer, but they have now begun to standardize urban ecological sanitation systems and apply ecological sanitation principles on a larger scale. In 2007, in drought-ridden northern China, an “eco-city” was built with modern urine-diverting toilets and treating household. Urine and feces are collected from each home and processed in an “eco-station”, similar to the way garbage and recycling are collected in parts of the U.S. This serves as an excellent case study to offer a foundation for implementing large-scale ecological sanitation systems that could be integrated into any urban environment.

Large scale urine fertilization projects have popped up as well. In Sweden, research from the EcoSanRes Programme, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, have experimented with collecting urine from apartment buildings and storing it in large underground tanks for six months. The “miracle fertilizer” is then pumped out into container trucks and delivered to nearby farms. Ecological sanitation group, Sara Transformacion, supports projects such as this public restroom collecting urine from a sports field in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Urine is collected and used for fertilizer in local agricultural fields and then stored for crop fertilization.

Luckily, the U.S. is attempting to push forward in similar directions with several sewer-less buildings in New York City (oh hey, my site again!). One example is the public restroom at the Bronx Zoo (above). Faced with making decisions regarding a ridiculously expensive sewer connection, they decided instead to go sewer-less, installing large Clivus Multrum composting toilets underneath the bathrooms and using all greywater on site. The Queens Botanical Garden visitor’s building (right) follows a similar pattern and is fitted with composting toilets as a part of a greater sewer-less system.

We equate “using the bathroom” to “waste”, but why does it have to go to waste? In addition to our dependence on what is “normal”, in this case our well-settled, backwards sanitation system, the unfortunate part (that I will admit, I have mocked to a great degree) is that this subject DOES make people laugh, or cringe, or write it off. People are uncomfortable (laughing can be a response of discomfort, don’t kid yourself) with the topic of their own digestive tract. The thought of handling our own waste, of it even having a functional use in our society, is a foreign concept to us.

In order for this new system to be implemented fully (beyond a handful of guinea pig cases), we have to start taking this shit (pun intended) very seriously. We are taking something natural, that comes from our body, and is full of nutrients our Earth is striving to retain… and tossing it in the “neighbor’s backyard”, so to speak, where it’s functional potential is wasted and instead it becomes an agent of pollution.

SOURCES

“Compost” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 29 November 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/compost>.

“Compost Uses” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 22 November 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/compostuses>.

About Composting Toilets. Greywater Action: For a Sustainable Water Culture. <http://greywateraction.org>.

Science and Technology. Clivus Multrum, Inc.: Manufacturer of Composting Toilets and Greywater Systems since 1973. <http://www.clivusmultrum.com/science-technology.php>.

But I digress.

This reading was actually one of my favorites. It was a great wrap-up for the themes discussed throughout the semester. I thought that the organizational layout of the article was the most successful element. Right away, the format was evident and allowed me to focus on the particular elements in more depth. I have such an unfortunately short attention span… so the bullet-pointing and one page topics really helped me to stay focused.

The term ecology has roots in the Greek terms “house” and “discipline”, referring to the “household of nature”. Today, it is defined as the study of the complex relationships between living organisms and their environments, centered on research of ecosystems and the idea of ecological balance. Just like we have been stressing all semester, the reading encourages a systemic perspective. Each ecological system must be considered as part of the entire world – as one, huge complex system.

The term sustainability was first used in 1712 in reference to conservation attitudes of the forestry industry. At the time, it illustrated the strategy that restricted annual harvests to the amount of new growth on the same area of land per year. This concept has now spread out and penetrated nearly every corner of society. In principle, sustainability means that we would not consume more natural resources in any given period than could be regenerated in the course of that same time span. Unfortunately, our society has evolved to the point that we now have an unhealthy dependency on the wrong resources. This leaves us not only far from the achieved principle of sustainability but actually moving steadily in the opposite direction. The Brundtland Report of 1987 publicized the widespread concern for the declining state of our environment and popularized the term sustainable development as a tool to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Due to the all-reaching nature of this issue, the term has since extended itself to include social development and economic progress. The reading stresses that we view this issue and its coupled limitations not as a negative but conversely as a necessary agent of change for the future of sustainable design. Sustainability is less a political than a humanistic issue. Change begins with us.

1972 Limits to Growth: models the consequences of world population increase and resource decrease

1973 Oil Crisis: legal prohibition on the commerce of crude oil to the West

1979 Energy Crisis:  onset of Iranian Revolution

1989 Brundtland Report:  ”sustainable development”

1990 Energy Crisis: result of the first Gulf War

1992 Rio Summit – Agenda 21: UN program related to sustainable development

1999: Earth’s population doubles from 3 billion (1960) to 6 billion

TEMPERATURE

Sustainable design begins with a greater understanding of energy and resources and more importantly their relationship to the human body. A successful design, no matter how energy- or cost-efficient it might be, needs to provide a comfortable and inspirational space for the occupants.

The human body absorbs sensible heat via convection and radiation from surrounding materials and latent heat through the processes of respiration and perspiration. The human body is a powerful machine that we often underestimate. It has the ability to adapt to a wide range of situations through metabolic processes, like: shivering, concentrating heat to the core, sweating, circulating blood through the veins, and increasing breathing rate. It is our job as architects to create an environment in which these processes are not necessary. Thermally-related discomfort is the leading source of occupant complaints, coupled with a noticeable decrease.

However.

Surveys show that people accept a wider temperature and humidity swing if they can influence their own environment, especially with operable windows. One way to control the thermal environment is to focus on the relationship between radiant temperature and air temperature control. Thermal energy is difficult to transfer through air. By manipulating the radiant heat emission of a space – using materials with low emissivity coefficient (stainless steel) – you can create a more comfortable, draft-free, and energy-efficient space.

The architects and engineers at BEHNISCH ARCHITEKTEN believe that the concept of well-being is not easily grasped in purely quantitative terms and that more subjective and less measurable qualitative elements must also be taken into account. We continually seek clues to human perceptual psychology in such apparent discrepancies, and often draw on natural phenomena to inform the design of our buildings.

SENSCITY PARADISE

Program: combines the elements of a traditional theme park: toy gallery, theater, auditoria, and restaurants with extensive public gardens, exhibition spaces and a series of playgrounds

Goal: family leisure park that serves as a large-scale inhabitable educational tool, demonstrating nature and its laws

Sustainable Design: the Las Vegas desert climate is an ideal opportunity to take advantage of evaporative cooling

AIR

Air is the mixture of gases in the earth’s atmosphere: mostly, nitrogen (78%) and oxygen (21%). The oxygen contained in the air is indispensable to life for all aerobic land animals. As human beings are part of the species of aerobic land animals, we also are vitally dependent on this oxygen to breathe, or respirate. Respiration defines the aerobic dissimilation of substances for the purpose of energy production, and just as importantly for the release of carbon dioxide, required by plant life during photosynthesis.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has proven that work productivity increases by 7% with better air quality and 13% with individual controllability.   Sick Building Syndrome describes general situations in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort problems that appear to be related to a building, but where no specific illness or cause can be identified. It results from limited airflows reduce or exclude air circulation – polluted by sources like building materials, furniture, ventilation systems, air filters, and the occupants themselves – proving that a poorly ventilated space not only affects human health but the health of the actual building as well! We can combat this issue by providing occupants direct access to fresh outdoor air, designing air distribution systems with shorter air paths and introducing plants to create a clean-air microclimate.

The Stack Effect, in buildings as well as flue stacks and chimneys, the ventilation resulting from thermal differences between indoor and outside temperature. A solar chimney is a relatively simple way of augmenting the natural ventilation of a building by taking advantage of the convection of air heated by passive solar energy.

HARVARD’S ALLSTON SCIENCE COMPLEX

Program: the “center” of the traditional campus is characterized by a seemingly endless network of courtyards, lawns, squares, and parks

Goal: set new standards in energy efficiency and the quality of the working environment (60% reduction in primary energy sources)

Sustainable Design: passive strategies are adopted wherever possible and all occupants are provided a degree of control on their environment

LIGHT

Without light, the human race is completely helpless. We are definitely not a nocturnal species, and that is evident in the fact that 42% of total electricity in U.S. is for lighting. Vision is a primary sense that is highly relied on. Cells in the retina, at the back wall of the human eye, react to light changes with a change in the voltage of the electrical signal, which is then transmitted to the brain via the optical nerve. For greater differences in light, the eye needs to adjust by changing the diameter of the pupil. The eye has separate optical receptors are responsible for skotopical vision (perception of black and white images  in dark surroundings) and photopical vision (perception of color).

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that access to daylight in a working environment can have up to a 15 to 50% increase in productivity. Daylight is flicker-free, skotopically rich, and covers a full spectrum of energy wavelengths. In fact, a single side of daylight exposure can provide light up to a depth 2.5 times the height. Daylight-optimized buildings save 80% electricity costs as well as the unwanted heat production from artificial lighting (2 to 4 times more than daylight produces).

Unfortunately, artificial lighting has become so deeply integrated into the public realm and everyday life that it poses a difficult challenge to move toward daylight as a primary light source. BEHNISCH ARCHITEKTEN believes strongly that light shapes our experience of space, and the qualities of light directly affect our perceptions of our surrounding – whether man-made or natural. Daylight allows for bright and invigorating interiors and, more importantly, a visual connection with the irregularities of the outside environment that is much welcomed to an occupant with a monotonous work schedule.

GENZYME CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS

Program: biotechnology company headquarters, a focal point for employees and visitors

Goal: a new environmental design approach to encompass a holistic approach to architecture

Sustainable Design: the design team, client, and construction team balanced aesthetics, cost, constructability, and reliability jointly to design both an environmentally- and financially-responsible headquarters using such strategies as: natural window ventilation, daylight as a primary light source, and a natural light collecting system that has resulted in a 45% reduction in annual energy-consumption and a 7% drop in absenteeism

MATERIAL

Conductivity is the ability to conduct heat and defines insulation performance of a material. Heat capacity measures how much heat can be stored in the material. Porosity describes its ability to absorb moisture. Reflectivity describes not only the ability to reflect and transmit light but also the absorption and transmittance of sound.

Embodied energy is the energy required for the manufacture and transport (“cradle to site”) of building materials. To consider the sustainable aspects of a material, you must consider its durability and its ability to be recycled.

Haptic perception is sensory perception of certain mechanical stimuli by localizing and evaluating touch, pressure, and temperature. The skin holds specialized sensory receptors which react to varying stimuli like pain, temperature, touch, stretching, movement, and vibration.

Certain materials have properties or characteristics that can be utilized in a wide variety of energy-efficient strategies: Concrete stores heat during the day and discharges it though night air flushing.  Metal (low emissivity) reduces heat radiation emission and reflect heat (long wave radiation) and can influence perception of temperatures. Clay regulates humidity levels through high levels of absorption. Water can be used to manipulate acoustic conditions (background noise), thermal conditions (evaporative cooling) and visual conditions (daylight reflector).

Design projects with a sustainable goal, like those of BEHNISCH ARCHITEKTEN, require a response to their environmental impact due to material extraction, processing, manufacturing, transportation, erection, dismantling, and demolition. The international construction industry has made many efforts to establish evaluation systems for the objective analysis of the environmental profile of a material, but currently there is no universally accepted system. The choice of construction materials is widely predicated on issues of aesthetics and cost, but this is not socially responsible enough, given today’s concerns for building-life cycle costs and environmental impact. The recycling of building products and construction components can prevent further environmental damage. Reduce, Re-use, Recycle .

INSTITUTE FOR FORESTRY AND NATURE RESEARCH

Program: laboratory and administration building and pilot project for ecological investigation into building

This chapter further develops daylight strategies, focusing on transition and differentiation and the components of daylight. The strategy choice must relate as a response to the needs and functions of the building. For instance, a temple or church seeks to use light to heighten the sense, while a school or office uses light to fulfill functional lighting needs. The transition from corridor to office, or corridor to classroom, will have an important impact on the visual perception of the space entered. A smooth transition between spaces is further helped by allowing daylight to enter from the atrium into the back of the classroom through high-level glazing. (Right) Another example are libraries which use light to optimize reading spaces and protect their volumes from decomposition.

Light is of critical importance in experiencing space. Identical rooms can yields fantastically varied results through the simple manipulation of opening size and location. We consider the light falling on a point (i.e. desk or table) in the room as being composed of three distinct components: light that comes directly from the sky called the sky component (SC), light that comes from external surfaces such as buildings called the externally reflected component (ERC), and light that is reflected from internal surfaces called the internally reflected component (IRC). (Left)

“On the side from which the light should be obtained, let a line be stretched from the top of the wall that seems to obstruct the light to the point at which it is to be introduced, and if a considerable space of open sky can be seen when one looks above the line, there will be no obstruction to light in that situation”. - Vitruvius

The Daylight Factor (DF) is more convenient and meaningful to specify the daylight illuminance in a room as a ratio, usually expressed as a percentage. (Right) The DF is simply the sum of the 3 components described above:

DF = SC + ERC + IRC

Additionally, the configuration of windows (i.e. position, shape, and size) strongly influence daylight levels and efficacy. Clear, sunny climates lead to complex aperture designs. Unlike the overcast sky, the clear sky is much more changeable and dynamic in relation to time of day and year. In these climates, direct sunlight plays an important role in interior natural lighting while also increasing solar thermal gains and prevent possible glare.

Daylighting is about quality over quantity. The concept of quality with respect to daylight is primarily concerned with daylight distribution, as measured at the point of interest.

The location of windows greatly affects daylight distribution. Rooms within a deep plan that share similar functions can utilize for higher openings to more evenly distribute daylight. In contrast, a deeper plan will benefit from both an increase in area and height in openings. Higher ceilings enable deeper daylight penetration. As a generality, the depth of useful levels of daylight penetrates almost twice the distance from the floor to the top of the aperture. (Left) Obviously, in addition to the placement, the size and shape of windows can increase the daylight potential.

The simplest implementation of rooflighting is a horizontal aperture in a horizontal roof. However, taking more complex geometries into consideration can increase daylight opportunities. There are two functional benefits to avoid traditional horizontal apertures. The plane of the aperture might either follow the plane of the roof or be deliberately inclined to control daylight distribution.

Direct sunlight, although it seems to offer maximum solar exposure, can actually cause some serious lighting issues, like overheating or extreme glare. Window design can help minimize glare and overheating and utilize daylight through controlled interception and redistribution.

]]> http://knb9ke.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/baker-chap-4-the-daylight-design-of-spaces/feed/ 0 knb9ke 4_3 4_11 4_16 4_22 http://knb9ke.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/baker-chap-3-building-form-and-the-potential-for-daylighting/ http://knb9ke.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/baker-chap-3-building-form-and-the-potential-for-daylighting/#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2011 00:38:35 +0000 Kelsey Bixler http://knb9ke.wordpress.com/?p=139 ]]> The importance of daylighting strategies is apparent, to not only save cost through the replacement of artificial lighting but also to increase aesthetics. This chapter specifies some of these strategies and how best to implement them into your own site to influence the shape, size, and orientation of the building to best optimize light opportunities, particularly in dense urban situations (*cough cough* our site is smack dab in the middle of NYC).

Unfortunately, daylighting design is hardly ever a primary consideration in the primary processes of building development. Site constraints tend to dictate and limit daylight opportunities. Even without site constraints, other planning strategies often take precedence over daylight consideration. However, daylighting strategies must be implemented early in order to optimize their beneficial impact on the design.

The core principle of daylight strategies is a simple one: penetrate the interior of a building either from the vertical facades (i.e. sidelighting) or from the roof (i.e. zenithal or rooflighting). County Hall in Westminster, London (right) illustrates this principle through courtyards and lightwells. The London Stansted Airport Terminal (below) exemplifies horizontal aperture rooflighting.

Some orientation techniques are irrespective of climate, particularly the advantages of the north and south facing facades rather than east and west. North-facing windows receive direct sunlight rarely and only at certain times of the year while south-facing windows can easily be manipulated for daylight design due to the consistent, high angle of direct sunlight. (Below) Along the same lines, maximizing the availability of daylight per floor area can be achieved through providing a sufficiently large view of the sky from as many windows as possible, considering the constraints of the site. This can achieved either above of between surrounding obstructions (i.e. buildings). (Below)

Daylight strategies and site analysis created and named some well-known common architectural vocabularies: courtyards, lightwells, galleria, and atria. These vocabularies offer solutions to daylighting issues, but obviously are site- and climate-sensitive. Each should be carefully considered in relation to site surroundings before being implemented. To a limited extent, daylight can be brought into deep-plan, multi-story buildings through the use of atria and lightwells. Courtyards, in contrast, can provide access to daylight by offering an alternative to deep-plan buildings with large floor area. Building form is not highly sensitive to climate in the way it responds to the need for daylighting. Response tends to be more at the level of detailed design of orientation, opening size and shading.

The two kinds of daylight available for use in light design to replace artificial lighting is direct sunlight and diffuse light from the sky. Diagrams and projections of these two elements have been boiled down to certain terms and geometries. The geometry of the sun path relative to the Earth is known precisely. This enables us to predict the solar altitude (vertical angle from the horizon) and the azimuth (direction relative to north or south). A cylindrical projection (below), which we have studied before, represents the azimuth on a horizontal and vertical axis. A stereographic projection (below) instead represents the whole hemispherical sky dome as a circular disk. The center represents the zenith (vertically overhead) and the circumference represents the horizon. Based off these two diagrams, we can conclude that, for a given latitude, the path the sun takes across the sky can be represented and calculated.

Daylight is between 5 to 10 times stronger than diffuse light, casting sharp contrasting shadows. Therefore, the relative position of the sun is important to predict optimal areas for light design. However, areas of predominantly cloudy climates must keep in mind their surroundings and therefore must base their own predictions off overcast sky conditions (i.e. diffuse light vs. direct sunlight). In these climates, the previous diagrams are used more to predict and avoid glare and optimize the amount of solar light energy that can be harnessed. Similarly, areas with high pollution and humidity percentages will also act to diffuse direct sunlight. It is always of the greatest importance to keep in mind the greater context of the site in question.

The aesthetics and energy efficiency of a building can be saved through the simple implementation of daylight strategies into the design. Relating to climate and site, the daylight available provides the starting point off of which we can determine to what degree artificial lighting can be replaced with daylight. Remodeling projects of existing buildings provide an excellent opportunity for us to put daylight strategies into practice. This may be by upgrading the windows, altering the glazed area and the position of apertures utilizing daylight, or inclusion of more advanced daylight strategies.

Just like any other area of design, the modern designer has much to benefit from traditional techniques. Traditional design, as far as light in design is concerned, focuses more on the people’s views and needs and therefore an unconscious expression of society and its culture. At the most primitive level, light in design begins with the analysis of local climate and its effect on structural lighting. Light in design emerged as a tool to combat extreme climates and regulate human comfort levels within the home. In areas of climate extremities, particularly an extreme supply of sun light and heat, the vernacular of light design turned to the architectural expressions of solar control.

Unusual roofing, common to the Sind district in Pakistan, channel wind into the building to combat the extreme heat conditions.  (Above Left)

Tree houses in the village of Buyay, located on Mount Clarence in New Guinea, optimize the ventilation of even the slightest breezes. (Above Right)

This goes for urban areas as well. The dense courtyards, thick masonry walls, and small window openings of Egyptian vernacular prove to be a prime example of this. Additionally, the close proximity between buildings is used to an advantage to shade the narrow streets and provide mutual shade. (Right)

Light was not only controlled in order to provide shade for the interior but also to highlight the exterior facade. The Hypostyle Hall of the Great Temple of Ammon brings light through a clerestory to penetrate light deep into the structure and reveal the sculptural qualities inside.

Moving north, where the winter days shorten drastically and cold effects culture in that the majority of social activities take place indoors. Here, daylight becomes more important as a tool to reveal and warm the interior. The Pantheon demonstrates a subtle and skillful use of light, primarily through the manipulation of the oculus, through which daylight can enter high up in the interior dome, tracing a path across the interior as the day passes. Gothic architecture took this same concept but applied it to a different degree using their own vernacular. King’s College Chapel (Above) shows the magnificent play of light along the vertical stone panels and the intricate decorative stone vaulting.

The age of enlightenment was one of reason, scientific method, and measurement of the intangible. The terms lux and lumen were used to describe light, and are defined as follows:

“Lux is the natural property of luminous bodies that imparts a motion similar to that of the body to which it belongs. This movements is its essence and does not depend on anything else intrinsic in the body. Lux was given its existence by the Creator at the act of creation of the world…“

Contrastly, “Lumen, namely the illuminating light, is the image of the light itself that is to say of lux, and its derivation is of a primary nation.“

In short, lux describes the emotional response one takes to light while lumen refers to measurable, calculable light.

Baroque architecture took the new knowledge of light properties and ran with it, using it to exaggerate the already exuberant and dynamic spatial qualities of its structures. The scientific transformation of light allowed this period and those after it to begin to experiment with light in a more creative way, versus just to supply a form for function.

“A superior manner of drawing is absolutely necessary, indeed, it is impossible not to admire the beauties, and almost magical effects in the architectural drawings of a Clerisseau, a Gandy or a Turner.” – Vermeer

The industrial revolution further developed the measurable and quantifiable elements of light through new materials and technologies to reduce traditional light design constraints. Iron was the material of choice, used to create a framework off of which massive glass panels could be attached, giving way to the first arcade and greenhouse designs.

Shortly after, followed the widespread implementation of artificial lighting technologies (i.e. gas, electric, and fluorescent lighting)  into structures of all genres. However, with the seemingly efficient nature of these implementations quickly came a social and cultural dependency the equivalent of a crackhead’s addiction.

To summarize, the role of daylight throughout history considers both aesthetics and functional requirements. Daylight is used as both, as a natural aesthetic and tool to reduce our dependency on artificial lighting. It offers the potential to achieve sustainable and beautiful architecture.

In my final project for studio I am trying to integrate a greenhouse to fulfill the “work” part of a monastery program. In theory, the monks would grow vegetables and sell them in a farmer’s market-esque shop along the streets of the Highline in Manhattan.

Until now, I’ve been dodging around the fact that in order to properly implement this I really need to stop blowing smoke up everyone’s ass and do some deeper research. So I started from the basics…

I made myself take a trip back into 5th grade earth science class so that I could dust off the cobwebs on my greenhouse knowledge. Essentially, a greenhouse is a structure made of transparent materials (commonly glass or more recently plastics) that allows for indoor vegetable and fruit cultivation. The transparent material absorbs incoming visible solar radiation, heating up the structure and allowing that heat to transfer to plants, soil, and other materials inside the structure. Although light can penetrate through because of the transparent covering, the heated air inside is kept inside the building by the physical barriers the structural envelope provides. Additionally, the infra-red radiation emitted by the growing plants is mostly reflected by glass and therefore keeps that heat inside as well. In simple terms, the primary heat source comes from the convection that occurs between the absorbs sunlight and retained warmed air. Of course, some heat is lost due to the conduction between the glass and exterior temperatures but, in essence, the majority of heat is retained.

Culturally, greenhouses are used internationally and are very popular. They can be used as year-round growing structures or sometimes are utilized as a warm winter vacation for plants that have trouble with cold temperatures.

Like anything and everything else, this process does have some setbacks. A watchful eye, preventative tactics, and quick recovery is necessary for the healthy life of a greenhouse. Because they are contained in a small space, pests and diseases can spread like wildfire, and speaking of which, heat and humidity can dangerously out of control if not monitored. Plants get thirsty too, so proper irrigation is vital to successful growth. Above all, ventilation is absolutely necessary in order to regulate the interior temperature, ensure fresh air for photosynthesis, increase pollination, and act as a preventative measure for pests and disease.

So a greenhouse is a glass structure in which plants are grown. Simple enough, right? But now there’s the issue of integrating this into a structure made to not only grow plants but to house people, sell produce, and offer open masses in a chapel to the general public. On top of it all, the site is smack dab in the middle of the metropolitan paradise of New York City. So I had to dig a little deeper in order to wrap my head around the processes and design that goes into an urban greenhouse.

First of all, what the hell am I going to grow? Seeing as we’re in NYC here, I definitely need to keep in mind the dialectical nature of the climate in Manhattan.  Sooo I dug up some data on the subject. New York City is classified as a “humid subtropical climate”, meaning that although there are hot, humid summers,  winters get pretty cool. As far as plants go, the most relevant climate information are the summer temperatures and frost dates. This lets you know what and when you can plant and harvest. Manhattan’s average in it’s hottest month of the year (July) is 76.5 degrees Fahrenheit, before humidity is added. In contrast, the average at the coldest month of the year (January) is 32.1 degrees Fahrenheit and can get as low as 10 degrees!

Winter comes early, but it packs its bags pretty quickly as well. The frost date for autumn is usually sometime  usually sometime after November 10th and lasts until a little before April 10th.

With this data, I realized that I would have to choose wisely at what plants my dutiful monks would be tending to, seeing as the temperatures vary so greatly throughout the year. My concept as of now, is to have a little switch-off between frost-hardy and warm-weather crops. This not only allows for a greater range of vegetables, but those that can be grown and harvested in season and help vary the nutrients of the soil.  During the cold winter months, green leafy crops like lettuce, kale and spinach do best, as do root crops like beets and carrots. The plants who love to bask in the hot humidity of summer will be the squashier variety like eggplant, tomatoes, and peppers, as well as sweet potatoes and corn.