This project was shortlisted as a special selection by IAAC BCN in the Design With Nature Contest November 21 in Barcelona, Spain which was organised by BuildSolutions; and was showcased within the accompanying exhibition.

The Project will also be published in the 2021 Responsive Cities Symposium Proceedings.

[PELLIS]

[Bio-Inspired Building Envelopes for Extreme Temperature Climates]

This project was a result of a three months research thesis in ESARQ-UIC as part of the Master of Bio-Digital Master Program.

THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS FACADE STUDY IS TO PROVIDE A BIO-INSPIRED FACADE SYSTEM THAT WILL BE INCORPORATED ONTO OLDER FACADES OF ANY BUILDING THAT RESIDESWITHIN THE DESERT BIOME. THE SYSTEM WOULD SERVE AS A SHADING DEVISE DEVICE AND CLIMATE CONTROL WHILE PROVIDING A PUBLICLY ACCESSED GREENARY PLATFORMS THAT SERVE TO LOWER THE IMMEDIATE HUMIDITY AND PROVIDE AN AETHSETIC UPGRADE TO THE MONOTONE DESIGN LANGUAGE OF A TYPICAL METROPOLITAN. THE ADDITION OF THE GREEN ELEMENT ALSO IS INTENDED AS A METHOD TO HIGHTEN THE HUMAN INTERACTION WITH THE MONOTONE TYPICAL FACADE SYSTEM AS THE GREEN PLATFORM PROVIDED WOULD INCORPORATE FARMABLE ZONES WHERE HABITANTS CAN INVOLVE THEMSELVES WITH THE NEW FACADE SYSTEM AND THE EFFECTS IT PROVIDES FOR THE BUILDING.

THE DESIGN INTENT WAS CONSIDERED FOR THE TYPICAL METROPOLITAN OF DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES AS THE HIGHER TEMPERATURE AND HARSHER CLIMATE PROVIDED A CHALLENGING ADAPTATION POSSIBILITES, WHILE THE TYPICAL DUBAI URBAN FABRIC AND DESIGN LANGUAGE DOES NOT TYPICALLY ALLOW FOR ANY HUMAN INTERACTION WITH THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT. FURTHER TO THAT, THE CITY HAS GONE THROUGH A MASSIVE EXPANSION CYCLE ON AN URBAN SCALE, WHILE THE OLDER PARTS OF THE CITY THAT WAS BUILT WITHIN THE PAST 50 YEARS ARE PRIME FOR RENNOVATION WORKS, THUS ALLOWING US AN ENTRY POINT TO EASILY INTEGRATE THE SYSTEM INTO THE URBAN FABRIC RATHER THAN FORCEFULLY INTRODUCE IT.

AS FOR THE SYSTEM ITSELF, IT WILL BE A MODULAR INFLATED AND MESH REINFORCED ETFE SYSTEM THAT IS RESPONSIVE TO THE SUN RADIANCE, DIRECT RADIANCE AND TEMPERATURE INPUT AND THE IMMEDIATE HUMIDITY. THE SYSTEM WILL INCORPORATE A FUNCTIONAL BIOFUEL CELL UNITS THAT UTILIZES THE HIGH SUN EXPOSURE TO GENERATE ELECTRICITY AND BIO-MASS. THE BIO-MASS GENERATE CAN BE THEN FURTHER UTILIZED AS FERTILIZER FOR THE FARMABLE GREEN PLATFORMS OR AS CONSUMABLE FOOD SOURCE FOR THE HABITANTS OF THE BUILDING SUBJECT TO THE SELCETION OF THE ACTIVE ALGAE SPECIES WITHIN THE FUEL CELL.

THE SYSTEM IN ESSENCE FUNCTIONS ON THE BASICS OF FLUID (WATER) CIRCULATION TO COOL THE FACADE SYSTEM. THIS IDEOLOGY OF DESIGN WAS INSPIRED BY STUDYING THE BIOMES FLORA THAT HAVE ADAPTED TO THE HARSH CLIMATE. AN EXTENSIVE STUDY OF THE FLORA REVELAED A TENDENCY OF THE FLORA TO HAVE LARGE SPREAD NARROW ROOT SYSTEMS THAT EXTEND AROUND THE PLANT BODY. THIS SYSTEM ASSISTS MAINLY IN STRUCTURAL SUPPORT OF THE PLANT AND NUTRIENT GATHERING, ALONG SIDE THE MINIMAL FUNCITON OF DIFFUSING THE TEMPERTATURE OF THE INTERNAL PLANT’S FLUIDS DUE TO THE HIGH EXCHANGE OF HEAT WITH THE RELATIVELY COOLER SOIL. THIS CONCEPT IS WHAT INSPIRED THE DESIGN INTENT FOR THE COOLING CIRCULATORY SYSTEM OF PELLIS

[CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT]

THE SYSTEM WAS GENERATED BASED ON THE TYPICAL DETAIL OF EXTERNALLY ATTACHED FACADE SYSTEMS USUALLY USED WITHIN THE INDUSTRY OF DUBAI. THE TYPICAL RENNOVATED FACADE SYSTEM CONSISTS OF METALLIC STRUCTURES THAT FOLLOW THE FACADE TYPICAL FORM AND HOLDS THE CLADDING UNITS SELECTED. (2.A) BASED ON THE TYPICAL FACADE SYSTEM, PELLIS SYSTEM IS OFFSETED AWAY FROM THE EXTERNAL STRUCTURAL FACADE OF THE BUILDING TO GENERATE A SEPERATION ACCESSIBLE VOID AND PLATFORMS. THE FORM ALSO WAS DEFORMED TO ALLOW FOR MAXIMUM INTERCEPTION OF SUN RADIATION. (2.B - 2.C) THE SYSTEM’S ELEMENTS WERE INSPIRED BY THE NEEDLY SHAPES OF THE LOCAL FLORA, THUS THE ELEMENTS IN GENERAL ARE HOLLOWED STAINLESSSTEEL PIPING THAT SPREAD BELOW GROUND LEVEL INTO A ROOTING SYSTEM STABALIZING THE STRUCTURE AND ALLOWING FOR MAXIMUM HEAT EXCHANGE BETWEEN THE ENCLOSED WATER CIRCULATORY SYSTEM AND THE SURROUNDING SOIL. (2.D) THE SYSTEM THEN WAS DUPLICATED TO ALLOW FOR MORE STRUCTURAL STABILITY. (2.E) THE ETFE POCKET SYSTEM WAS THEN SPREAD ALONG THE STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS. THE ETFE SELECTED WOULD ALL BE MESH REINFORCED ETFE TO ALLOW FOR MORE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE SYSTEM WHEN THE POCKETS ARE HOLDING LIQUID WATER. THE ETFE POCKETS ARE ALSO CONNECTED TO A PULLY SYSTEM EACH TO CONTROL THE SIZE OF THE POCKET THUS ALLOWING FOR RADIATION PENETRATION CONTROL INTO THE INTERMEDIATE VOID. (2.F) THE POCKETS ARE ALSO SPLIT INTO TWO DISTINCT SYSTEMS, AND OPAQUE POCKET SYSTEM THAT WILL BE SPREAD ON THE HIGH RADIATION ZONES OF THE FACADE, AND A TRANSPARENT SYSTEM THAT WOULD BE SPREAD ON THE MEDIUM TO LOW RADIATION AREAS OF THE FACADE AS PER THE RADIATION STUDY PERFORMED. THE SYSTEM WOULD FUNCTION IN GENERAL AROUND THE BASIC HEAT EXCHANGE CONCEPT BETWEEN THE SOIL COOLED WATER THAT IS CIRCULATED WITHIN THE OPAQUE ETFE POCKETS, AND THE SURROUNDING AIR. FURTHER TO THAT, THE TRANSPARENT ETFE POCKET SYSTEM WOULD HOUSE THE ALGAE SPECIES ALLOWING FOR MORE RADIA-TION PENETRATION INTO THE INTERMEDIATE VOID AND ALLOWING THE SUN TO ACTIVATE THE ALGAE ENCLOSED TO PHOTOSYNTHESISE AND GENERATE ELECTRICITY WHILE GROWING

[DETAILED DESIGN DEVELOPMENT]

1- Interior floor finish 2- Interior floor and wall mortar 3- Interior floor water proofing 4- Building structural Envelope 5- Interior wall finish6- Chemical fixing anchor 7- PELLIS structural interface wall bracket glossy white stainless-steel finish 8- Flexible and stretchable water pipe dia 20mm (A- water output pipe feeding the system, water input pipe feeding the system) 9- PELLIS circulation secondary water pump 10- PELLIS horizontal structural element ~150x150 mm cross section, 25mm thickness white stainless steel 11- Neoprene seating block and filler 12- Water pump compartment and hinged opening 13- Mechanical fixing nut and bolt 14- PELLIS structural interface with wall – base plate ~150x150x25mm stainless steel glossy white 15- Exterior façade thermal insulation ~30-45mm 16- Exterior façade renovated finish glossy white 17- PELLIS platform’s walkable stone path, white sandstone. 18- PELLIS platform’s soil and planter 19- Water intake pipe penetration into the platform’s soil to assist in cooling 20- Planter water proofing 2x layers of 2mm bitumen membrane. 21- Reinforced ETFE membrane with embedded metallic mesh-opaque, white-relaxed state 22- Refined water enclosed system 23- Reinforced ETFE membrane with embedded metallic mesh-opaque, white-stressed state 24- Reinforced ETFE membrane with embedded metallic mesh-transparent- relaxed state 25- Reinforced ETFE membrane with embedded metallic mesh-transparent- stressed state 26- Algae medium 27- Sealed and waterproof sipping system embedded within the ETFE membrane to allow access for unit maintenance and cathode / anode replacement. 28- Corked drainage points top and bottom of the ETFE pocket to allow for media replenishment and cleaning. 29- Light fixture 30- Responsive system computer terminal 31- Electric cable (A-computer / battery, Biofuel cell cathode / anode) 32- Data cable 33- Battery and system fuse box 34- ETFE pocket rigid interface base with the motorized pully system 35- Pully system cabling ~10mm dia threaded elastic rope 36- Radiation intensity sensor 37- Pully system rotation motor and rope spool 38- Waterproof and leakage proof ETFE penetration interface 39- Cathode, metallic in nature (copper) 40- Anode, metallic in nature (Aluminum)41- Below ground level main pump substation 42- Copper capillary piping

[CASE STUDY - THE PALLADIUM TOWER JLT]

THE PELLIS SYSTEM WAS APPLIED ON THE FACADE OF A NATIVE DUBAI BUILDING (THE PALLADIUM TOWER) AND SYMULATED TO A SUCCESS. THE ORIGINAL STATE OF THE FACADE HAD A DIRECT RADIATION UPWARDS OF 1100 KWH/M2 WITH A 2700+ HOURS OF ANNUAL DIRECT SUNLIGHT HOURS FOCUSED ON THE SOUTHERN, SOUTHERN WEST, AND SOUTHERN EAST FACADES. THE APPLICATION MANAGED TO PROVIDE A ~65% DIRECT RADIATION IMPACT ON THE INTERIOR BUILDING ENVELOPE. FURTHER TO THAT, THE DIGITAL SIMULATION PROVIDED A ~35% DECREASE IN HUMIDITY. THEY SYSTEM FUEL CELL ARRAY ESTIMATED AN AVERAGE OUTPUT OF 1 KILO VOLT IN PEEK HOURS OF THE DAY THAT WOULD BE USED AND SAVED BY THE BATTERY ARRAY ACCOMPANYING THE SYSTEM ITSELF.