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IMPACT
The Phoenix Lab A wave of timber and glass swells out of an old brownfield site. Four horns poke free from the crest, reaching out into the wind. A canopy of photovoltaics capture energy from sunlight. It is, of course, the Carbon Neutral Laboratories on Jubilee Campus’ Innovation Park. Officially opened in early 2017, the CNL cost £27 million funded primarily by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and the High Education Funding Council for England. Additional funds were provided by the Wolfson Foundation and the University of Nottingham.
“Every millimetre of the CNL is an experiment in radical change”
And all this is done in buildings primarily constructed using steel and concrete—amongst the most energy intensive materials out there. With the Climate Emergency rapidly approaching a tipping point, we cannot continue to do science in this way. A radical change is needed. Every millimetre of the CNL is an experiment in radical change. The primary building material used is from around 100 sustainably managed alpine spruce trees. The north-face is coated with wildflowers and grasses, allowing the biodiversity of the area to flourish. The only interruptions to the striking undulation are four horns, which gives the building the appearance of a rack of ribs from some angles. These aren’t there for aesthetics. They capture and direct wind to naturally ventilate the laboratory spaces and fume cupboards. The power consumption for the labs in the CNL are 55% lower than the average modern chemistry lab and haveheating requirements 75% lower (Chemistry World, March 2017). In part, this is due to technology used in both the construction and operation of the building.
The energy requirements are met by a biomass-fuelled combined heat and power unit and an expansive array of photovoltaics. These are translucent, to allow natural light to flood into a communal space known as the Winter Garden. This space is used as a social and outreach space to showcase sustainable science.
“Misfortune is not the end, but an opportunity to learn and go again”
Of course, any discussion of the CNL can’t avoid the ironic elephant in the room: that the incomplete timber frame burnt down in 2014. The university still aims for the building to be carbon-neutral within 25 years. It certainly doesn’t shy away from the fire, either. Fragments of the destroyed building are housed as art in display boxes, a series of graphite sketches depict a phoenix rising from the ashes. Misfortune is not the end, but an opportunity to learn and go again.
Graphic & Page Design by Natasha Phang-Lee
Traditionally, chemistry is an energy and resource intensive discipline: fume cupboards continuously refresh vast volumes of air, water keeps experiments cool, solvent waste is destroyed by incineration, entire labs are maintained at a precise temperature with air conditioning and heating systems.
Sustainable science is about more than the building it is done in. It is about a change in attitudes and working styles. I am lucky enough to work in the building. The vast lab spaces are designed with collaboration at their core and shared by multiple research groups. Science is not a thing done by lone scientists in dingy basement labs. The CNL changes that perception. Science is something to be shared, open and rooted in sustainability.
Matthew Bird
