ECOLOGICSTUDIO
PHOTOSYNTHETIC ARCHITECTURE
Introduction
and proposes a novel architectural symbiosis. The projects discussed in this folio can be interpreted as a crucial transition in the architectural paradigm, whereby the urban environment is no longer a container of programmes or functions, as in Le Corbusier’s modernist ideal of ‘a machine for living’ (Le Corbusier 1927), but instead becomes a dynamic process of production, a ‘living machine’. A total of 13 experimental projects have been carried out with three families being considered as the most significant:
Cities emit 70% of global CO2. Buildings alone consume approximately 36% of the world’s primary energy and are responsible for 40% of global CO2 emissions, which is estimated to increase to a further 60% by 2050. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, we must ‘reach “net-zero” climate goal by 2050’ to avert catastrophic impact (Carbon Brief 2019), meaning that any emissions must be balanced by appropriate schemes to offset them. Algae has the capacity to digest and break down not only CO2 but also other air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Current research indicates that algae also has the potential to capture trace metals dissolved into the environment by biosorption and bioaccumulation processes (Malinska and Zabochnicka-Swiatek 2010). Alongside this, algae can also be harvested to supplement protein intake from animal products, which leads to more sustainable food production and supply chains. The nutritional composition of microalgae is mainly made up of proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and trace nutrients, including A and B vitamins and antioxidants. This research investigates the materials and conceptual consequences of the integration of microalgae in the built environment. The growth of algae is dependent on the amount of CO2 that it is fed with but also environmental conditions that can be systematically optimised. There are many variables to be considered ranging from habitat and climate to the specific type of algae and the conditions necessary for its growth: solar radiation, temperature and pH. Coupling algal growth with building operations affords a renewed level of efficiency
BioTechHut
BioTechHut (6–8) was conceived as a permanent biotechnological dwelling and is composed of three fluidly interconnected environments that loosely embody the fundamental programmes of a living space: the Biolight Room, a dark and calm space in which the only visible light is emitted by bioluminescent bacteria when oxygenated by the air handling system; a further room featuring H.O.R.T.U.S. XL Asthaxantin.g; and a more open environment encompassing the Garden Hut, a space for the production of superfoods and bioenergy. Here, the Algae Photobioreactor Room is filled with growing phototropic micro-organisms that use photosynthesis to generate biomass and oxygen (O2) while absorbing CO2. At the core of the Garden Hut is a harvest area for the processing and transformation of biomass into food and electricity. Measuring 180 m2 in plan, BioTechHut can host a large family and supports 1,600 l of living cyanobacteria cultures in its glass photobioreactors. In optimal conditions, it produces approximately 1 kg of dry algae per day.
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