Okhta Tower to be Europe's Tallest Green Building

Sustainable buildings in Europe will have a new height to scale with the creation of the Gazprom Tower, officially known as the Okhta Tower. The plan has recently been given the green signal to begin construction; it will be designed by UK-based architectural firm RMJM. Upon completion, this building will be the tallest in Europe and one among the world’s most energy-efficient.

St. Petersburg in Russia will be the home to Okhta Tower, which through its 77 storeys will cross 400 metres in height. This tower will primarily serve as headquarters to Gazprom’s oil unit, OAO Gazprom Neft, and will also be home to a concert hall, a museum, a hotel and a business centre. In the name of sustainability, this tower will incorporate multiple elements for energy-efficiency during construction.

Glass Skin

The building will be insulated by an exoskeleton, dubbed as a low-energy ‘fur coat’, and will consist of two layers of glazed glass ‘skin’ with an atrium between the inner and outer walls. This buffer zone will supply the building with natural ventilation, sunlight for interior lighting and at the same time will act as a thermal insulation by keeping the structure warm during fierce minus 30 degrees Russian winters. Trees and plants will be sandwiched between the double glass walls, which will be responsible for providing warmth in winter and lower temperatures in summer.

The outer wall will comprise of temperature-colour-changing glass panels. This tower will change colour up to 10 times a day depending on the position of the sun, and creating a dazzling scene of a 300m-tall twisting glass tower across 75 floors.

Inspired by the pentagonal plan of an ancient Scandinavian fort believed to have once occupied the site, the tower consists of a central concrete core ringed by five square interlocking floorplates. The floorplates spin on their axes as they ascend, giving the building its twisted effect. A 'cog mechanism' - whereby the five floorplates interlock - ensures the tower's stability.

Sustainability

The pentagram design of the tower maximises access to daylight and allows for spectacular views for the offices without losing heat due to exposed surface area in comparison to other structures.

Specialized water, heating and ventilation systems have also been incorporated to reduce the energy consumption levels of the building. There will be a public viewing gallery on the 70th floor.

The office floor plans will also feature a large number of social spaces and green zones that will let the workers to access leisure areas without wasting energy by using elevators for vertical transportation.

The cost of construction is estimated at to $2.4bn. This cost will be borne jointly by Gazprom's subsidiary Gazprom Neft ($1.4 billion) and the St Petersburg City Administration ($1 billion).

LEED Platinum for Asia Square, Singapore: Sustainable Architecture Redefined

Asia Square – a compilation of twin towers at Marina bay in Singapore has earned for itself, the LEED Design Core & Shell (LEED-CS) Platinum pre-certification from the US Green Building Council. This is the only building in Singapore to attain the LEED Platinum, and it has also secured the Green Mark Platinum Award for a new non-residential building from Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA).

Features like energy & water-efficiency and high indoor environmental quality, among several others, helped the twin towers earn these honours. This multiple-use sustainable tower covers 2.65 million sq ft Grade-A space and its construction will be completed by the year 2012. It is estimated that Asia Square consumes 33 % less energy and 40 % less water, when compared to the other conventional buildings of similar size.

Structure

The twin towers float above a podium structure, and sport semi-transparent glass walls and a ceiling punctuated with glass roof panes. The podium structure accommodates “The Cube” - a vibrant, 100,000 sq ft (9200 sq m) public space used for networking and recreation – Exhibitions, performances and other shows are held here on a regular basis. Asia Square also includes 280-room five-star hotel and 60,000 square feet of retail space.

Asia Square Tower-1 will feature 43 floors and Asia Square Tower-2 will feature 46 floors with the hotel occupying the 32nd to 46th floors. The retail space within Asia Square will be located on the 1st and 2nd floors in both towers.

Asia Square will be connected to surrounding developments through an extensive network of underground pedestrian walkways and second storey links.

The structure incorporates several environmentally sustainable features. It will house the largest photovoltaic cells (solar panel) installation in Singapore and also the first bio-diesel generation plant in a commercial development in the CBD.

Sustainable Features

Façade
Tower-1 uses the triple Low-E Coating double glazing and insulated spandrel heights in the façade to trap the sunlight and flood daylight into the interiors, thereby reducing the cooling cost and conserve energy to a maximum possible extent.

The Cube

The Cube – an open air plaza towering at a height of 16m - is naturally ventilated and fully landscaped. Skylights in The Cube maximize the influx of natural light during the daytime. The roof is designed in a way that reduces the need for a mechanical ventilation and smoke extraction system. Also, high ceilings allow thermal stratification and the landscaping helps further regulate temperature.

Bio-Diesel Plant

Asia Square is the first downtown commercial building in Singapore to locate the bio-diesel generation plant. The oil waste from the catering establishment is recycled into 2, 40,000 litres of bio-diesel annually, which is planned to donated to charity.

Motion Sensor

Motion Sensors are installed at all lift lobbies, toilets, car parks and staircases to vary lighting levels according to occupancy and usage, ensuring maximum energy saving.

Water Efficiency

To maximum the conservation of the all-important natural resource, highly water-efficient fittings, certified as ‘very good’ and ‘excellent’ under ‘PUB WELLS’ are selected for all basin taps, bib taps, urinals etc. Further, rain water is harvested and discharged into irrigation water tanks, which will be reused for landscape irrigation. It is estimated that approximately 65 million litres of water can be saved annually through these water-friendly fittings and processes.

Photovoltaic Cell

Asia Square has the largest renewable energy generation systems of all commercial setups in Singapore. Photovoltaic cells cover the entire roof area and generate nearly 270,000 KWh of power per year.

Air Conditioners

Chilled water for the air-conditioning systems is supplied by the district cooling plant operated by Singapore District Cooling. Variable speed drivers will ensure that the chilled water is distributed by the pumps in accordance with the buildings’ cooling load requirements, thereby contributing to energy conservation.
Lighting

All office areas are equipped with T5 light fittings, complete with high-efficiency electronic ballasts, to achieve optimal energy saving while ensuring sufficient illumination.

Photo sensors are incorporated in all office areas, which assist in reducing the use of artificial lights at the perimeter zones.

Regenerating Elevators

Elevator movement generates kinetic energy which will be converted to electrical power, which in turn will be distributed back to the grid. The elevators are therefore expected to consume 18% less power compared to buildings without the power regeneration system.

Source: www.Asia-square.com

Glass Workshop Building in Tokyo – Light as Air

A new workshop building in glass has come up in Japan for upcoming engineers and scientists; it has been designed by Tokyo-based architecture firm Junya Ishigami and Associates. This is a crystalline glass building that serves as a flexible studio and workplace for students at the Kanagawa Institute of Technology, Tokyo. Ishigami and his team aim to create an ideal environment for KAIT students to work on self-initiated projects and build things.

This single-story glass box workshop covers an area of 21,410 sq-ft. The glass studio has a large open floor plan topped with a roof and supported by columns of various sizes. A floor-to-ceiling glass facade and strips of skylight on the roof create a spectacular work environment for design projects.

The floor-to-ceiling glass makes the building appear weightless and elegant, and the open plan preserves the building’s sense of transparency as the viewer’s eye can shoot directly across the uninterrupted space. 305 slender steel columns of various sizes support the stripped roof of skylights and are scattered all over the building in a random fashion.

The white columns and the frameless glass façade almost make the building disappear. The façades are formed by 5m×1.5m glass panels that are just 10mm thick. They are stabilised by perpendicular fins, which offer complete transparency. The column arrangement and need for elimination of partition walls allow the studio to maintain its feeling of openness.

During the day time, glass skylights above the building offer unbeatable natural light. At night when the lights are lit, the glass building shines like a star on the ground. Ceiling fixtures and task lamps enable factory-like facilities to operate long after classes end for the day.

The one-room building contains 14 freely arranged, open spaces. These include a check-in area, denoted by an Ishigami-designed, donut-shaped counter, as well as specialized areas for pottery, woodworking, computer graphics, metal casting, and other media.

There are also four multipurpose work spaces, a small supply shop, and an office-like alcove for the facility supervisors. Ishigami eschewed organizational devices, such as structural grids, proscribed circulation paths, and even walls (the closest lavatories are next door). Instead, he used rectangular columns, furniture of brown wood or white steel, freestanding HVAC units, and potted plants to modulate the whole 16-foot-high space.

To blur the boundary between indoors and outdoors, Ishigami eliminated all openings on the glass walls except for doors and a few small floor vents that draw fresh air supplied by roof vents. Inside, the columns function as abstract trees and potted greenery—each plant carefully selected by the architect—serves a bona-fide design role, not just a decorative one.

Recognition to Architecture

The Queensland Regional Architecture Awards for 2010 will be given away in June this year by the Queensland Chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA). Outstanding architecture projects submitted by members of the Institute this year were judged on different parameters and honoured.

Descriptions of some of the nominations follow.

UQ Rural Building

The Rural Clinical School building of the School of Medicine in Toowoomba won the Regional Commendation at the 2010 Darling Downs Regional Architecture Awards. This building was designed by Arkhefield architects at a cost of $4.2 million. The highlight of this clinical centre is its unique design structure.

The facility boasts of a state-of-the-art teaching and learning space for up to 80 students, a dedicated Clinical Skills Laboratory, advanced audiovisual equipment, a 24-hour computer lab and a Lectopia education recording system.

This Rural clinic building makes use of concrete walls, copper soffits, and timber doors complemented by large expanses of glass. The jewel in the crown of the design is its sustainable aspects such as self-supporting glass walls, solar energy for winter heating and a smart air-conditioning system to independently service different sections of the facility.

Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort Hybrid Solar Power Station

The Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort Hybrid Solar Power Station was designed by Peddle Thorp Architects and will be the largest Off Grid Power System in Queensland funded under the Government program. This hybrid off-grid power station offsets the electricity needs of the resort whilst reducing carbon emission, noise and reliance on fossil fuel.

The Hybrid Power Station consists of 130 square meters of Solar Panels, Battery Banks with 48 cells, Inverters, and a brand new generator that is a third of the size of current units. Initial reduction in fuel consumption and emissions is estimated to be approximately 40% and the proposed system is expandable, allowing for additional solar panels or wind generators to be added over time, thus further reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

Marcus Beach House

Marcus Beach House received 2010 Sunshine Coast Regional Architecture Award. This house - designed by Bark Design Architects - enjoys a natural, coastal setting, providing its occupants a chance to be one with the landscape and surrounding environment.

Windows and doors of the Marcus beach house are positioned in a way that they capture the prevailing breezes; and an overhanging roof protects the house from direct sunlight. Artificial lighting is kept to a minimum owing to appropriate glazing. The roof over the Master Bedroom pavilion rises to the north providing a band of high level, operable, clerestory glazing that captures daylight and allows warm air to escape, setting up an effective ‘stack effect’ natural cooling process. This eliminated the need for air conditioning.

Maleny House

Maleny house is designed by spark Architects in the sunshine coast hinterland. This house is also one of the architectures to own the 2010 Sunshine Coast Regional Architecture Award as Marcus Beach House. Expansive decking, terraces and large amounts of glass – extending to the skillion roof in places – open the internal spaces to the outdoors, creating a sense of a house without walls.

The Maleny house makes use of recycled hardwood from 60-year-old telegraph poles. The house’s old concrete rainwater tank has also been put to good use, incorporated into the landscaping; now forming a terrace for an oversized chessboard. The presence of 5 additional water tanks allows storage of up to 120,000 litres of rainwater.

Energy and consumption have also been addressed with a ‘butterfly’ roof capturing winter sun – and allowing for a number of solar panels – and polished concrete floors in the extension providing thermal mass. Herb and vegetable gardens have also been developed, aiding the owners in self-sufficiency.

Acid-Etched Glass

Acid etching is a process that uses a strong acid to cut into another substance. It is used for both industrial and artistic purposes. For example, etching can be used to prepare flooring like cement for painting or refinishing, while artists use it to create detailed pictures on metal or glass.

Acid-etched glass has a distinctive, uniformly smooth and satin-like appearance. Acid-etched glass admits light while providing softening and vision control.

Origin of Acid-etched glass

During the middle ages, acid glass-etching was somehow clouded with controversy since its acid medium, hydrofluoric acid, caused too much of a health risk to the artisans. In fact the acid was so potent that users were found to have been poisoned even by its mere fumes. Accidents most often happened where a skin contact with the acid dissolved into the tissues, which later resulted in mutilation or loss of the artisan’s fingers. As a result, acid etched glass craftsmanship lacked refinement and thus lost its luster as an art collection.

Now, there are etching tools such as swivel knives, pick knives, adhesive masks aside from the squeegee which makes it possible for an ordinary person to work on acid glass-etching.

Acid-Etching Glass production

Acid etched glass is produced by acid etching one side of float glass. Etched glass is created by cutting a design stencil that is made of an abrasive resistant material, such as vinyl or rubber. The resulting stencil is called a resist. The resist is then secured onto the glass to be etched. A blaster gun, powered by an air compressor, is used to bombard the glass with the abrasive. Every part of the glass that is not covered by the resist will take the frosted effect while the parts protected by the resist will remain clear, thus producing a piece of etched glass.

Etching glass - Hydrofluoric acid

Glass is etched by hydrofluoric acid, or by hydrofluoric acid gas. The gaseous acid has the property of producing a surface which resembles ground glass in its appearance; the liquid acid produces clear etching. Etching glass, therefore, consists of 2 distinct branches. First, the production of a dull image on a clear surface (when the gas is used) and second, the production of a clear image on a surface previously ground or dulled by means of the liquid acid.

The glass plate to be etched is cleaned and gently warmed until hot enough to melt wax. The surface is then covered with an equable layer of white wax, by rubbing the wax over it. When cold, the design is cut out of the wax with a graver. A shallow leaden trough, about the size of the plate (but a trifle smaller) is obtained, into which is placed a small quantity of finely - powdered fluorspar. This must be weighed and then gently sifted over the bottom of the trough. To every 2 parts by weight of fluorspar add 3 of good oil of vitriol. Stir quickly with a wooden stick, and place on the hob or other warm place. Vapour will soon rise.

Now the trough is removed and covered over with the waxed and graved plate, wax side downwards. In a very short time, the acid will have etched the bare portions of the glass. When sufficiently etched, remove the wax by melting. To prepare the liquid acid for clear etching, place 2 parts fluorspar and 3 of sulphuric acid in a leaden retort, the tube of which must dip into a leaden bottle half - filled with water.

Apply heat to the retort as long as the water will absorb the fames generated. If a ground glass be prepared with wax, as above, and a ledge of wax or putty be made round it, on pouring the liquid acid on the plate, clear lines on the dull ground will result; or a "flashed" colored glass may, by the same means, a colorless picture on a colored ground can be done. The sheets of clear glass may themselves be dulled by exposing them, without previously waxing, to the fumes of the acid gas.

Applications

Acid etched glass is perfect for both interior and exterior applications. Architecture and construction, like in houses, restaurants, hotels, commercial buildings, etc. They are found in many residential applications such as home decoration like furniture components. Some of the suggested applications are:

• Interior partitions
• Railings
• Shelves
• Shower and bath enclosures
• Doors and windows
• Glass walls
• Kitchens
• Interior and exterior doors