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The Energy Autarkic Living Laboratory Neil Burford

Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Figure 1: Sectional axonometric showing spatial and constructional arrangement

Figure 2: View from south west

Project Details The Energy Autarkic Living Laboratory is an integrated technical platform for the ongoing research, technical development, assessment and in-use performance of an experimental energy self-sufficient building. The project develops novel spatial and constructional techniques for the design of a small-scale self-build, Passivhaus prototype and tests the viability of achieving energy autonomy in both regulated and unregulated energy demand. The research also takes into account the use of regionally sourced materials, water conservation and treatment and the design’s material and formal responses to its landscape context.

Practice

Macro Micro Studio, Architecture and Planning, School of the Environment, University of Dundee

Title

The Energy Autarkic Living Laboratory

Output type

Building artefact

Function

Full-scale experimental building test-bed

Client

University of Dundee: Architecture, Engineering and Physics

Location

University Botanic Gardens, Perth Road, Dundee

Collaborators

Dr David Rodley and Dr Stephen Reynolds (Physics), Prof. Rod Jones (Civil Engineering)

Funding

approx. ÂŁ200,000 (from various sources including small grant funding, charitable trusts and industry in-kind)

Dates

Phase 1: September 2013 to November 2018 Phase 2: January 2019 to ongoing

Design Research & Construction Team

Macro Micro MArch Unit, MSc Renewable Energy projects + various inkind industry contributions.

The Energy Autarkic Living Laboratory Neil Burford

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Statement Can energy autonomy be achieved for a small-scale experimental building in the Scottish climate and how does context, material, spatial, technical and user/environmental interactions inform its design and performance?

This interdisciplinary project is situated within a significant historical context of experimental buildings that test design and performance of environmentally responsive architecture and renewable technologies. MIT’s solar projects developed between 1939-1959, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Solar Hemicycle (1943) and Louis Khan’s Direct Gain House (1947), illustrated the distinction between engineering experimentation and empirically derived architectural solutions. [1]. Contemporary approaches to ultra-low energy buildings were established in the 1970’s with the DTH Zero Energy House, Philips House and Wates House, underpinning Passivhaus, the current benchmark for ultra-low energy design.

This work is also situated in low energy self-build exemplified by the Solar Decathlon projects begun in 2002, BRE Innovation Park and University of Nottingham low energy building prototypes. Laterally, there has been an emphasis on finding cost effective solutions for Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB’s), technical solutions for addressing gridscale intermittency in power generation and smart technologies for reducing demand side energy use. This project works at the intersection of these challenges providing a living laboratory for assessing in-use performance of carbon-negative LZCGT’s. power storage (batteries and seasonal fuel cell), passive environmental design, user behaviour and environmental tectonics.

This ‘living laboratory’ provides a unique opportunity to develop and study the interfaces between building, local decentralised micro-grid, and user, enabling these more complex systems to be understood and managed. It develops smart bottom-up buildings and systems driven by the needs for resource efficiency, comfort, energy autonomy and integrated material and spatial strategies.

This cross-disciplinary research adopts blended and mixed methods approaches combining qualitative design studies, quantitative predictive modelling, empirical based laboratory testing, full-scale prototyping, post-occupancy environmental and energy inuse monitoring.

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Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Figure 3: View from west The Energy Autarkic Living Laboratory Neil Burford

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Figure 4: Design development process showing decision criteria determining geometrical and spatial arrangement hrough a sythesis of ergonomics, passive solar principles and active power generation, form factor and shell construction sing fabricated timber plates.

Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Introduction In the European Union (EU), energy used in buildings accounts for approximately 40% of the EU’s final energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions, making the building sector the largest energy consuming and climate change inducing sector [2]. In Northern climates, where heating demand dominates, it has been shown that fabric efficiency improvements (FEES) are the most cost effective means for improving the energy efficiency of buildings. Currently, Passivhaus (PH) sets the benchmark standard for achieving ultralow energy performing buildings and has been a significant step beyond current UK legislation in terms of reducing Specific Space Heat Demand (SSHD). Although FEES and passive building design strategies have an important role to play in CO2 reduction, they can only go part way to reducing regulated energy demands. While space and water heating account for nearly half of total end use emissions, unregulated demand for electricity, driven by increased plug load, is growing faster than any other final energy source [3,4,5,6,7]. Reducing demand for both regulated primary energy and unregulated energy use within buildings will become increasingly important as the national grid is decarbonized and the inherent constraints on renewable power generation become more onerous [8]. Consequently, buildings are likely to play a more significant and strategic role in both supplying the grid with renewable energy but also in contributing to balancing demand and managing building users’ energy consumption behaviour.

Conceived as an experimental laboratory, this ultra-low-energy building prototype. provides a technical platform to test Passivhaus building energy efficiency in the Scottish climate and an autarkic renewable energy system relying on a 3 kW VAWT, 4.8 kW PV array and 24 kWh Lithium Ion battery back up providing 1.5 days of short-term storage capacity [9].

The research was driven by both the technical requirements for achieving energy autonomy and a qualitative agenda to challenge the language and formal character of “green buildings”.

The first phase of the research has recently been completed with statutory approvals given for the Passivhaus standard shell, internal fit-out, PV system, and the installation of an onsite weather station, internal environmental and power monitoring. Work is currently underway with industrial partners to fund the second phase development of the energy storage system and smart controls.

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Figure 5: Passive and active energy systems: the open varied spatial arrangement of interconnected volumes allows free-flowing air movement, cross ventilation and stack effect. Heat recovery ventilation is concealed within built in furntiure units. VAWT and PV used in conjunction with short-term battery storage.

Figures 6 + 7: FEA model eveloped to analyse plate behaviour of the shell. Roof structure during prototyping in structures lab uses novel Scottish based timber systems and precision CNC produced components specifically designed to resolve the complex geometry and connection of the roof facettes.

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Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Figure 8: Internal views of the main spaces depicting single storey, two storey and three storey height volumes that govern the spatial omplexity of the interior. A simple material pallette was chosen to distinguish the shell from the interior compnents (mezzanine, kitchen, built-in furniture and stair components). The exposed insulating concrete floor/epoxy screed provide active thermal mass..

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Figure 9: PHPP verification sheet used in the modelling of the environmental perfromance performance of the building 10

Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Figure 10: Bespoke ‘front-end’ to PHPP software developed to model multiple variables and compare different configurations of fabric specification, geometry, window positions/sizes etc.

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Aims and Objectives • to understand the efficacy of designing a grid-tied, net-zero low-energy building that integrates carbon negative LZCGTs, medium-scale power storage, energy management and predictive controls; • to monitor physical and environmental performance of a Passivhaus standard building and understand user behaviour in relation to predictive weather data and energy consumption; • to develop a formal, spatial and environmental tectonic for a net-zero low-energy building that responds to the high-value landscape context of the University Botanic Gardens.

Questions Can energy autonomy be achieved for a small-scale experimental building in the Scottish climate and how does context, material, spatial, technical and user/environmental interactions inform its design and performance?

Funding £200,000 funding for first phase awarded made up from industry in-kind contributions, and various small grant and charitable trust awards including: Forestry Commission (Scotland), Scottish Funding Council Innovation Award(s), Norman Fraser Trust, Walter Craig Trust, Creative Scotland Innovation Fund..

Esteem Indicators Dundee Institute of Architects: Winner Small Projects Award – Zero Energy Studio, Botanic Gardens, Dundee, December 2015 Finalist, Timber In Construction Awards, Manchester, November 2013.

Citation in Edwards, B., Rough Guide to Sustainability, Chapter 9 - Super Low Energy Houses, p220-240, 4th Edition, RIBA Publications, London, 2013.

Various online and web publication (bdonline, vimeo, inhabitat, plusmood, homemadedessert), popular press, manufacturers and specifiers product literature.

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Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

Exhibitions and Keynote Addresses • Burford, NK., (with Macro Micro studio), 2013. Prototype Zero Energy Laboratory, RSA Open Architecture Exhibition – New Contemporaries, Royal Scottish Academy, The Mound, Edinburgh, Dec – Jan 2013 • The Energy Self-Sufficient Timber House: A Development Model, Keynote Speech, The Innovative Timber House Conference, Edinburgh, 3rd May 2016.

• Impact of LZCGT’s and Future Perspectives in Low Energy Building Design, Scottish Household Survey Annual Conference, Scottish Government, Perth 7th and 10th March 2016.

• Macro Micro Studio: Prototype Energy Autonomous Laboratory, Dundee Institute of Architects, CPD/AGM 24th March 2016 • Macro Micro Studio: Prototype Energy Autonomous Laboratory, Mackintosh School of Architecture, Friday Lecture Series: Process, Craft Culture, January 2016 • Prototype Zero Energy Laboratory, talk to Dundee Rotary Club, Invercarse Hotel, Dundee, November 2015.

• Prototype Zero Energy Laboratory, Botanic gardens, Dundee, Saltire Society, Doors Open Day, November 2014 & October 2013.

Publications Journal and Conference Papers: Burford, Reynolds, Rodley & Jones, 2015. Macro Micro Studio: A Prototype Energy Autonomous Laboratory, Sustainability, Basel, Vol. 7, 1-x manuscripts; doi:10.3390/ su70x000x Burford & Robertson, 2016. Prototype Zero Energy Studio: A research-led, student-centred live build project: Case Study, Brookes eJournal of Learning and Teaching, Oxford Brookes University.

Burford, Reynolds, Rodley, Jones & Ahmed, 2016. Prototype low-energy studio in Dundee Botanic Gardens, Scottish Renewables Solar Conference & Exhibition, Edinburgh, Edinburgh. 06-07 Sept 2016 Reynolds, S., Rodley, D., and Burford, N.K., 2013. Prototype Energy Autonomous Studio in Dundee, Scotland. SEEP 2013 - 6th International Conference on Sustainable Energy and Environmental Protection: Proceedings. Krope, J., Olabi, A. G. & Goričanec, D. (eds.).

Maribor: University of Maribor, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, p. 168-174.

20-23 August 2013

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References [1] Burford, NK. & Pearson, AD., 2013. Ultra-low-energy perspectives for regional Scottish dwellings, Intelligent Buildings International, Volume 5, 2013 - Issue 4, Taylor and Francis, London.

[2] Groezinger, J.; Boermans, T.; Ashok, J.; Seehusen, J.; Wehringer, F.; Scherberich, M. Overview of Member States Information on NZEBs: Working Version of the Progress Report—Final Report; European Commission Project BUIDE14975; Ecofys: Cologne, Germany, 2014.

[3] Musall, E.; Voss, K. Zero Energy Buildings—A Term with Various Meanings; Detail Green: Munich, Germany, 2012; pp. 70–73.

[4] Marszal, A.; Heiselberg, P. Zero Energy Building Definition—A Literature Review; Joint Project—Task 40/Annex 52, Net Zero Energy Buildings, Solar Heating and Cooling Programme; International Energy Agency: Paris, France, 2010.

[5]. Kibbert, C.; Fard, M. Differentiating among low-energy, low-carbon and net-zeroenergy building strategies for policy formulation. Build. Res. Inf. 2012, 40, 625–637.

[6]. Hernandez, P.; Kenny, P. From net energy to zero energy buildings: Defining life cycle zero energy buildings (LC-ZEB). Energy Build. 2010, 42, 815–821.

[7]. Pless, S.; Torcellini, P. Net-Zero Energy Buildings: A Classification System Based on Renwewable Energy Supply Options; Technical Report NREL/TP-550-44586; National Renewable Energy Laboratory: Golden, CO, USA, 2010.

[8]. Millar, G. Electricity Storage: Realising the Potential; Institution of Civil Engineers: London, UK, 2015.

[9]. Burford, Reynolds, Rodley & Jones, 2015. Macro Micro Studio: A Prototype Energy Autonomous Laboratory, Sustainability, Basel, Vol. 7, 1-x manuscripts; doi:10.3390/ su70x000x

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Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

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Design and Creative Practice Research Folios School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Editor: Neil Burford Content Š Neil Burford