Archinect - News

Los Angeles approves nation's largest solar and battery energy storage system

2019-09-12T17:37:00-04:00

Under the 25-year deal with developer 8minute Solar Energy, the city would buy electricity from a sprawling complex of solar panels and lithium-ion batteries in the Mojave Desert of eastern Kern County, about two hours north of Los Angeles. The Eland project would meet 6% to 7% of L.A.'s annual electricity needs and would be capable of pumping clean energy into the grid for four hours each night. The combined solar power and energy storage is priced at 3.3 cents per kilowatt-hour [...]

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti praised the approved Eland Solar and Storage Center as an integral part of the city's climate commitment to reach 55% renewable energy by 2025, 80% renewable energy by 2036, and 100% renewable energy by 2045.

"Located on 2,650 acres in Kern County, California, the project will include two large-scale solar facilities that will capture 400 megawatts (MW) of solar energy and store up to 1,200 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy — all of which can be distributed to meet peak demand, reducing the need for natural gas at night or on cloudy days," explains a statement issued by the Mayor's office and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, adding, "The site will hold enough energy to power 283,330 homes across Los Angeles."

First solar road fails to live up to expectations

2019-07-24T15:17:00-04:00

The world’s first solar road in Normandy, northern France, which opened in 2016, has failed to meet expectations. The 2.8 square km of solar panels is in part damaged beyond repair and the 1km road did not produce the power the manufacturer Wattway had promised. Panels were worn out by traffic and joints between the panels were shattered.

After less than three years in operation, the high-profile 1-kilometer trial stretch of the world's first photovoltaic road in northern France has failed to meet expectations.

Instead of delivering the promised 790kWh per day, the first year's actual daily power output was only half that amount, with a total of 149,459 kWh during that year. Only 37,900kWh were generated since the beginning of this year.

According to Energy Reporters, the project's manufacturer, Wattway, which also installed dozens of other, smaller solar roads, admitted that "our system is not mature for inter-urban traffic."

World's largest single-site solar project goes online in Abu Dhabi

2019-07-09T13:16:00-04:00

Abu Dhabi is claiming the title of the world's largest single-site solar project, having hit the go-button on the Noor Abu Dhabi project this week, with a reported capacity of 1.177 gigawatts, eclipsing Dubai's Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park – for now at least. The United Arab Emirates doesn't have a great record when it comes to per-capita carbon footprint, but projects like this show that it's serious about addressing the issue head-on.

"According to the Abu Dhabi media office, the project has sufficient capacity to supply 90,000 people and is expected to reduce Abu Dhabi's CO2 emissions by one million metric tons, or the equivalent of removing 200,000 cars from the road," reports New Atlas.

A new and improved, 'Decathlon 2019–2020', is heading back to DC

2018-08-29T21:15:00-04:00

Teams that compete in the Solar Decathlon Build Challenge must design and construct fully functional houses...In the National Showcase, teams will ship their houses to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in June 2020 for display and operation on the National Mall. In the Local Build, teams will showcase their built houses in their communities and bring a smaller representative exhibit to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival

Plus, both the Solar Decathlon and Race to Zero competitions are merging, creating the new, U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon.

For further details check out the 2019–2020 Competition Guide

The Lotus House Explores the Potential of 3D Printing for Sustainable Construction

2018-08-15T12:21:00-04:00

From consumer goods to medical devices, 3D printing is reshaping the manufacturing world. But what about construction? Could this technology change the way buildings are made?

That’s the question posed by a team from Washington University in St. Louis. Over the past eight months, students from the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts and the School of Engineering & Applied Science — with support from the International Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability (InCEES)— have used 3D printing to design and fabricate elements of Lotus House, an energy-efficient prototype residence unveiled this month as part of Solar Decathlon China 2018.

In this Q&A, project manager Kinga Pabjan, a master’s candidate in architecture and construction management, discusses Lotus House, 3D printing and the future of sustainable construction.

Project manager Kinga Pabjan. (Courtesy Team WashU)

Describe Lotus House. What inspired the design?

Lotus House is a 650-square-foot, single-story home. The...

Olafur Eliasson and IKEA are designing a series of affordable, solar-powered tools

2018-06-12T18:06:00-04:00

The Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson and the Swedish furniture retailer Ikea are teaming up to produce a range of accessible and affordable tools that function without mains electricity and use renewable energy. Eliasson’s Little Sun project, co-founded with Frederik Ottesen, created a solar-powered torch for the 1 billion people worldwide who live off the power grid. It is now sold cheaply in more than 600 African outlets. [...] The products developed will be available in Ikea stores.

Olafur Eliasson is a busy man these days: after recently completing his first building, he's now announced a major design collaboration between his Little Sun initiative with IKEA to create a line of sustainable and affordable off-the-grid tools.

Little Sun Original in Burundi. Photo: Aminata Nimaga.

“Little Sun makes solar energy tangible and your world a little bit more sustainable," Olafur said. "We are excited to collaborate with IKEA, raising awareness for energy access and the need for global togetherness. Together, we want to connect the world by sharing the power of the sun with everyone."

California is now the first state to require solar panels on new homes

2018-05-10T14:12:00-04:00

California just sent the clearest signal yet that rooftop power is moving beyond a niche market and becoming the norm. On Wednesday, the Golden State became the first in the U.S. to require solar panels on almost all new homes. Most new units built after Jan. 1, 2020, will be required to include solar systems [...]. While that’s a boost for the solar industry, critics warned that it will also drive up the cost of buying a house by almost $10,000.

Rooftop solar panels are finally becoming an integral part of most new California homes beginning in 2020, however skeptics say that the move will further worsen the state's housing crisis.

How a small, conservative Texas town became a key player in the renewable energy revolution

2018-04-20T14:33:00-04:00

Georgetown (pop. 67,000) last year became the largest city in the United States to be powered entirely by renewable energy. Previously, the largest U.S. city fully powered by renewables was Burlington, Vermont (pop. 42,000), home to Senator Bernie Sanders, the jam band Phish and the original Ben & Jerry’s. Georgetown’s feat is all the more dramatic because it demolishes the notion that sustainability is synonymous with socialism and GMO-free ice cream.

In his piece for Smithsonian Magazine, Dan Solomon tells the story of Georgetown, TX's green energy transformation and its unexpected champion, Republican mayor Dale Ross—who is now friends with Al Gore and was even featured in his An Inconvenient Sequel documentary.

LafargeHolcim & Heliatek present photovoltaic concrete cladding system

2017-11-08T14:44:00-05:00

Photovoltaic (PV) concrete cladding is set to outperform rooftop solar, according to LafargeHolcim, which has developed a façade system with partner Heliatek. The team said that the photovoltaic energy-generating concrete facade has the capability to double the energy generation traditionally achieved by roof-based solar systems.

"A prototype of this new photovoltaic facade system will be presented at Batimat, the French construction fair in November, and a pilot project is planned in 2018," LafargeHolcim writes in a recent announcement.

UK researchers create solar generating glass bricks

2017-08-18T15:28:00-04:00

Facades using the product, called Solar Squared, will be able to generate electricity while allowing greater amounts of daylight. The blocks also provide improved thermal insulation, developers say. Solar Squared’s design consists of an array of optical elements that focus sunlight on small-sized solar cells. These are incorporated within the glass bricks during manufacture and they collect diffuse components of sunlight, making it useful for capturing solar energy in urban areas.

Academics from the Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Science department of England's University of Exter have developed a solar power technology that fits into glass bricks. Its modular design is scalable, allowing for flexible structural integration. We now have the capability to build integrated, affordable, efficient, and attractive solar technologies as part of the building's architecture, in places where energy demand is highest, whilst having minimal impact on the landscape and on quality of life.

The team is currently looking for test sites to demonstrate the effectiveness and potential of Solar Squared and seeking investment for their new start up. For more information visit Build Solar's website.

How solar battery storage will affect microgrids and off-grid living

2017-08-14T17:32:00-04:00

In March, Tesla cut the ribbon on this groundbreaking grid-scale battery installation, a key test of the viability of energy storage in making renewable energy a more reliable part of the grid. With 50,000 solar panels and 272 batteries, the combined solar-and-storage plant provides enough energy to power 4,500 homes for four hours. If Tesla can help keep Kauai solar-powered around the clock with its batteries, then it can apply what it has learned elsewhere in the country, and around the world

In her Longreads/Grist piece, author Amelia Urry explains the changing nature of solar power challenges that off-grid dwellers as well as smaller, geographically isolated microgrids face now that battery storage on an industrial scale is becoming more lucrative.

The article tells the story of a young couple struggling to live off the grid on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, when at the same time, the local utility cooperative switches on its brand-new bank of Tesla batteries to store the abundant solar power it generates during daytime but couldn't offer during peak times in the early morning and late evening hours: "It’s not about getting off the grid. It’s about building a better one."

Tesla's 'Tiny House' goes on roadshow to promote its solar tech

2017-08-14T14:19:00-04:00

Tesla revealed today that it created what it calls the ‘Tesla Tiny House’ to feature its energy products, like solar panels and Powerwall. The company is bringing the house on tour using a Model X “to educate the public on how to generate, store and use renewable energy for their home.” The tiny house contains a Tesla mobile design studio and configurator to help home owners configure a solar plus energy storage system for their home.

Needless to add that the Tesla Tiny House itself gains all its electricity via a solar installation on the tiny roof.

The exhibition tour is limited to four major Australian cities for now, but the economic gain could be far from tiny — as the world's leader in capita penetration of rooftop solar installations (15% of households / 1.5 million households), Australia is a highly lucrative market for Tesla even though it hasn't started selling solar panels there.

IKEA starts selling home battery storage with its solar panels

2017-08-03T14:18:00-04:00

Ikea is now offering solar panels and home batteries to its customers in the UK. The Scandinavian furniture chain is partnering with solar firm Solarcentury for the venture, with prices for solar battery storage starting at £3,000 (about $3,970 USD). The home batteries are designed to work with existing solar panels, or as part of a new combined home solar panel / battery storage system that Ikea is selling.

The Swedish furniture retail giant first starting solar panels in the UK back in 2013 to grow on a (then) heavily subsidized green energy market but ceased sales in 2015 when the British government announced its plans of cutting solar subsidies by up to 90%. Just a few months later, IKEA returned with a new lineup of home solar panels, this time partnering up with the firm SolarCentury.

"An average solar home in the UK will typically consume around 40% of all the solar electricity generated, or even less if they are regularly out during the day," IKEA explains in a new statement. "The remaining 60% of unused solar electricity is sent back to the National Grid, at a loss compared to its value. This means that homeowners currently lose out on making further cost savings. By adding Solar Battery Storage, unused solar electricity can be stored and used at a later time, meaning the amount of solar electricity an average home can use doubles to 80%."

With the launch of its Solar Battery S...

MoMA releases new videos of Jenny Sabin's Lumen installation, the winner of 2017 Young Architects Program

2017-06-27T13:34:00-04:00

Jenny Sabin's Lumen installation, made up of over a thousand digitally knitted photo luminescent cells that change color in the presence of sunlight, is raised over MoMA's PS1 courtyard and will open today, on June 27. In the recently published videos, the architect explains the development of the 500-pound solar-active canopy and demonstrates its construction and installation process.

Can architecture behave like an organism? | LUMEN (360 VR Video) Part 1 of 4 | AT THE MUSEUM

Digitally knitting a solar-active canopy | LUMEN Part 2 of 4 | AT THE MUSEUM

Raising a solar-active canopy at MoMA PS1 | LUMEN Part 3 of 4 | AT THE MUSEUM

"By night, Lumen is knitted light, bathing visitors in a responsive glow of photo-luminescence; by day, Lumen offers succor from the summer heat, immersing participants in delicious ground clouds of cooling mist. Lumen is a socially and environmentally responsive structure that adapts to the densities of bodies, heat, and sunlight. A lightweight knitted ...

This Kickstarter wants to turn your window blinds into solar power generators

2017-05-11T12:33:00-04:00

Let’s say you want to switch to solar—for ecological or economic reasons—but are a renter. Installing solar panels on your roof isn’t really an option unless you get permission from your landlord. Enter Solar Gaps, or photovoltaic solar blinds that can be installed easily, and temporarily, on any window. According to their Kickstarter, Solar Gaps can reduce your electricity bill by up to 70%

The smart blinds track the sun throughout the day and adjust their position accordingly. They can generate up to 100W-150W of renewable energy per 10 sq. ft. (≈ 1 m2) of a window, which can power three MacBooks. They also are still regular blinds, and so can reduce energy by shading the interior to lower AC costs. Moreover, the Solar Gaps integrate with existing smart home tech, like Google Home, and can be controlled with your smart phone.

It’s a pretty nifty idea, and their implementation is pretty easy to imagine. As of now, they have the look of photovoltaics, so they don’t necessarily blend i...

MIT startup creates camouflage solar panels

2017-02-24T14:17:00-05:00

Founded at the MIT Sloan School of Management, Sistine creates custom solar panels designed to mimic home facades and other environments, with aims of enticing more homeowners to install photovoltaic systems. Sistine’s novel technology, SolarSkin, is a layer that can be imprinted with any image and embedded into a solar panel without interfering with the panel’s efficacy. Homeowners can match their rooftop or a grassy lawn.

The product caters to the growing "aesthetic solar" market which tries to attract homeowners that are considering going solar but fear the aesthetic impact of the traditional, bleak-looking dark solar panels on their home's appearance. Just last fall, Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed a line of glass, photovoltaic cell-embedded roof tiles that mimic (currently) four common roof covering styles.

Here a few more examples of Sistine's SolarSkin technology that allows—so the company claims—the panels to either completely blend in with the existing roof or display any desired image, like business logos or advertisements.

All images via Sistine Solar's website.

Foster + Partners' Apple "spaceship" set to touch down and open up in April

2017-02-23T12:57:00-05:00

According to a press release from Apple, it will take six months to move all 12,000 employees into the 175-acre campus, which will officially open for occupancy in April. In addition to the 2.8 million square foot, naturally ventilated Foster + Partners'-designed "spaceship" building, the campus features two miles of running and walking paths, and boasts a 17 megawatt solar energy rooftop installation (making it one of the largest in the world). Nothing about this place is small, or happenstance; the construction process was reportedly a clash between perfectionist designers and slightly more impressionistic contractors.

However, all's well that ends well: although Steve Jobs won't be able to see the completed campus, designer Apple's chief design officer Jony Ivy feels like things worked out. “Steve invested so much of his energy creating and supporting vital, creative environments. We have approached the design, engineering and making of our new campus with the same enthusiasm and ...

Las Vegas's city facilities are now entirely run on renewable energy

2016-12-21T12:38:00-05:00

After a large solar array, Boulder Solar 1, came online on Dec. 12, the city was able to buy enough carbon-free electricity to power its 140 buildings, streetlights and other facilities. [...] The renewables, plus energy efficiency savings, are estimated to save the city roughly $5 million per year [...] The Vegas city council, after threatening to leave the grid entirely in 2015, struck a deal with NV Energy that would help the city get to 100% renewable.

Related on Archinect:

AECOM halts work on Faraday Future's $1-Billion Nevada factory

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh made a $350 million bet on downtown Las Vegas – five years later, the results are murky

Vegas is back...sorta

Learning from Las Vegas: a look at the Strip through urban planning lenses

Forget solar panels: Elon Musk is thinking "solar roof"

2016-08-11T12:41:00-04:00

Why place individual solar panels on top of a pre-existing roof when you could just build an entire roof with solar technology integrated into it? Elon Musk, CEO of the financially underperforming Solar City and Tesla, sees it as an obvious solution. According to CNNMoney, he said that "If your roof is nearing end-of-life, well, you've got to get a new roof anyway. And so, why not have a solar roof that's better in many others ways as well?"

Although details on the solar roof are still elusive, Musk did note in a blog post that he'd like to build the roofs by integrating SolarCity's technology and Tesla's home battery storage systems.

For more on Musk:

NYC's Lowline is approved by city officials, becoming world's first underground park

2016-07-14T14:25:00-04:00

What do you do with a sad, funky, abandoned trolley terminus? Well, if it's the former Williamsburg Bridge Trolley Terminal under Delancey Street in New York City, you make the world's first underground park by virtue of adding some mirrors, skylights, and vegetation. One acre in size, the freshly city-approved park (which took nearly a decade to go from its initial concept to getting the green light from the city) makes use of solar technology to pour sunlight into the former terminal, which has remained unused since 1948.

"Every designer dreams of doing civic work that contributes to society and to the profession," said James Ramsey, Lowline Co-Founder and Creator. "Over the last 8 years, we just stuck to what we thought was a great idea that could make our city and our community better. We're thrilled to move ahead on designing and building a space that people will enjoy for generations to come."

For more on innovative design news in NYC:

San Francisco to mandate solar panels for new constructions

2016-04-20T13:44:00-04:00

The solar power industry is about to get a big boost in San Francisco. On April 19, the city’s Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to become the first major US metropolitan area requiring that new buildings install solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on their roofs. California already mandates that new buildings with 10 floors or less designate at least 15% of their rooftop area (pdf, p8) as being ready for solar panel installation.

"The city of San Francisco now requires that builders actually install solar panels in these areas (at a minimum) starting in 2017. Larger buildings are exempt for now."

Curious about other efforts to make American cities reduce their carbon footprint through harvesting solar energy? Check out these articles:

New Nevada solar plant can store heat from the sun for up to 10 hours – with molten salt

2016-04-05T13:50:00-04:00

Renewable energy like solar and wind is booming across the country as the costs of production have come down. But the sun doesn't always shine, and the wind doesn't blow when we need it to. [...] A company called SolarReserve may have found a solution: It built a large solar plant in the Nevada desert that can store heat from the sun and generate electricity for up to 10 hours even after sundown.

A river of solar power: a scheme for the Tijuana river

2016-03-23T18:30:00-04:00

In Tijuana, another architect is devising a plan to turn the Tijuana River channel into a solar farm that could provide power to as many as 30,000 homes. Rene Peralta, co-founder of the Tijuana firm Generica and director of an architecture master's program at San Diego's Woodbury University, thinks that his city can transform this unwieldy piece of infrastructure into a renewable energy plant and water-cleaning station.

February 2016 was the hottest month in several thousand years, so it seems like a good idea to start transforming erstwhile urban heat islands into power-generating rivers. Below, Generica's rendering of the proposed redesigned Tijuana river channel:

For more on projects that turn seemingly intractable swaths of infrastructure into gorgeous urban amenities:

Denver selected to host the 2017 Solar Decathlon

2016-03-15T13:56:00-04:00

Dr. Orr revealed that Denver won the bid to host this biennial event, in which student teams compete to design, build, and operate cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive solar-powered houses. [...] The competition is planned to be staged near a new development close to Denver International Airport. The area around the 61st and Peña Commuter Rail Station is positioned to become a national model for sustainable, transit-oriented, greenfield development [...].

Archinect coverage of previous Solar Decathlons:

NBBJ proposes strategy for creating skyscrapers that don't cast shadows

2015-03-17T17:43:00-04:00

They used computer modeling to design a pair of buildings, one of which works like a gigantic, curved mirror. The glass surface of the northernmost building reflects light down into the shadow cast by its southern partner. And the carefully defined curve of that glass allows the reflected light to follow the shadow throughout the day.

Burlington, VT first U.S. city to hit 100% renewable energy

2015-02-09T13:36:00-05:00

Burlington’s switch to renewable energy will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save $20 million over the next 20 years and keep energy prices stable [...] The move is only one part of a solution for climate change, according to Taylor Ricketts, professor of Environmental Science at the University of Vermont. “Climate change is the biggest problem we face, maybe the biggest problem we’ve ever faced. But there’s no silver bullet to fix it,” he said.

Solar-Paneled Roads Open in the Netherlands

2014-11-17T18:29:00-05:00

To capture more energy from the sun, one company is putting solar panels where they've never gone before: in the street. This week, the Dutch company SolaRoad officially opened the world's first solar roadway in a suburb outside of Amsterdam. The 230-foot (70 meters) stretch of energy-absorbing concrete and glass will be used as a bicycle path for commuters, according to the company.

The City That Made Solar Power Illegal

2014-08-13T14:09:00-04:00

The rainy season coincides with summer in Dakar, which means it’s the power-cut days. The heat goes up, A/Cs kick into gear and the power utility, Senelec, cannot cope. [...] Enter solar. This potential renewable savior is a latecomer to Dakar because until recently solar power was banned in cities, as it was considered what the French pointedly call “compétition déloyale” – unfair competition. But under pressure from Dakar’s own citizens, the ban was lifted under the last government [...].

Saving face: Prêt-à-Loger designs solar-powered skin to preserve Dutch row houses

2014-02-26T18:13:00-05:00

How do you transform over 2 million Dutch terraced houses into more spacious, neutral-energy homes while they're still being inhabited? According to a team of TU Delft students, a solution to that is Prêt-à-Loger.

Translated to "ready to be lived in," the Prêt-à-Loger model was developed to preserve the historic Dutch row house, which was mass-produced for the middle class during the post-war period. The row house remains as the most common house typology in The Netherlands and is a cultural icon for many Dutch residents.

Trying to preserve and sustainably enhance the houses to modern-day standards, the Prêt-à-Loger team designed an adaptable "skin" made of solar panels and smart technology that can be applied to the house's facade. The skin can be customized to the various shapes and sizes of the homes.

The team recently celebrated the official kick-off of Prêt-à-Loger. With the support of partner organizations, they plan to implement the concept to a local neighborhood in Honselersdi...

World's first "solar sidewalk" installed at George Washington University

2013-10-21T21:14:00-04:00

We typically see photovoltaic panels up on roofs, as they're broad, open surfaces that receive a lot of sunlight. You know what else spends a lot of time in the scorching sun, though? Sidewalks. With that in mind, a team at Washington DC's The George Washington University has created what is claimed to be "the first walkable solar-paneled pathway in the world."

But can my car drive on it? Built by Studio39 Landscape Architecture, the solar-sidewalk is installed on GWU's Virginia Science and Technology Campus.