Sustainability and Anti-Weapons Initiatives Meet at the London Olympic Stadium

The design proposal for the new 2012 London Olympic Stadium by Populous (formerly HOK Sports) boasts many green building initiatives, not least of which is their use of recycled guns and knives as structural steel. In the last year, the Metropolitan Police have collected more than 52 tonnes of scrap metal from old keys, knives and guns and now it’s being melted down to form the structure of the new stadium!

Sustainability doesn’t stop at the structure, the design also features a host of other environmentally friendly materials such as a façade of hemp.

Furthermore, and possibly most exciting, the entire stadium will be prefab and flat-packed. This construction technique not only significantly reduces the environmental impact of the structure as it is constructed but allows for the entire stadium to be broken down and shipped off to the next host city for reuse. The potential is enormous! Gone are the days of reconstructing massive stadiums every two years for a single use, this new system effectively eliminates wasteful obsolescence.

Currently, talks are underway with Chicago, but London organizers hope that their offer is taken up by whoever wins the games. If the plan goes forward, this would be the largest amount of seats ever moved from one place to the next, and the first time in history that a stadium of this size has been moved.

Via Inhabitat.

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Very, Very Durable Concrete.

Imagine that the structures architects design and build today are still defining the landscape in 16,000 years. With the new concrete under development by MIT civil engineers, that vision is becoming possible enabling us to let the world grow old according to Freya Matthews’s vision.

At MIT, engineers have discovered that by reducing creep (the time-dependent deformation of structural concrete) through nano technology they can create lighter, stronger, more durable concrete that can last many civilizations allowing the relics of our society to remain for future generations to enjoy and reducing the need for repair and the construction of new structures.

Concrete is one of the most frequently used and widely produced man-made building materials on earth, with over 20 billion tons produced per year globally. It’s production and life-cycle is responsible for 5-10% of global CO2 emissions. Imagine the impact of a more durable, longer-lasting concrete. “More durable concrete means that less building material and less frequent renovations will be required.” says Franz-Josef Ulm, an engineer working on the project. The new material promises to be seven times more durable than its current counterpart thus reducing the environmental impact by 1/7.

Via inhabitat.

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Solé Tiles: An Integrated Solar Solution For Clay Tile Roofing

Solé Power Tiles are electricity-generating “barrel-style” tiles which can be installed in an integrated way with US Tile’s traditional clay tile roofing. The Solé Power Tiles install like a standard tile with no penetrations into the tile itself. The benefit to the consumer or developer is that the solar components are not readily visible.

Solar energy is a renewable alternative to power plants that burn fossil fuels, finite resources that contribute to pollution, global warming, as well as the reliance on imports for our energy security. Photovoltaic (PV) systems convert sunlight into electricity, powering everything from lamps to air conditioners in a residential or commercial building.

In PV systems, direct current (DC) electricity is produced. Appliances and machinery, however, operate on alternating current (AC). The DC energy produced by the panels is fed into an inverter that converts the DC power into AC power, which then feeds into the main electrical panel that powers a home or business. Any excess generation is fed back into the utility grid. Over a year, as a utility customer, your electricity bill is reduced by the energy you produce.

To learn more visit ustile.com and srsenergy.com.

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MIT Graduates Develop A Color-Changing Roof Tile

A team of recent MIT graduates has developed roof tiles that change color based on the temperature. The the tiles are white when the temperature is hot, allowing them to reflect away most of the sun’s heat. The reverse happens when the temperature is cold, they turn black to retain heat.

“The team’s lab measurements show that in their white state, the tiles reflect about 80 percent of the sunlight falling on them, while when black they reflect only about 30 percent. That means in their white state, they could save as much as 20 percent of present cooling costs, according to recent studies. Savings from the black state in winter have yet to be quantified.”

Read more at www.impactlab.com

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Eco-Innovative Residences from a Rag Factory

Images from Onion Flats

A Philadelphia architecture firm, Onion Flats converted a rundown industrial site into a creative residential complex. Previously a collapsed and vacant dump site in Fishtown, Philadelphia, “Rag Flats” is the result of experimental exploration of local urban dwelling and energy efficiency.The Rag Flats exemplifies innovative conversion of historic buildings into modern living spaces. The site features a 6000 gallon cistern to store rainwater. Different scales of residential units reflect Onion Flats’ consideration of density, intimacy, and privacy in an urban community. The building features an individually metered, 32KW photovoltaic panel system, green roof gardens and earth friendly flooring.

Today, the Rag Flats established itself as a hub for the community, bringing people from the Southern Philadelphia and Fishtown together. Tenants and friends are able to enjoy parties and other events in this remarkable green space.

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Vertical Green

Forget about finding that perfect painting to cover the space above your couch, why not just plant a garden. Living walls are easy to imagine outdoors like an ivy covered building or a topiary maze, but with all the new solutions for modular green roofing, it’s now possible to bring a little of that lush garden inside. A number of companies have started making living wall units that are a much more manageable size. Most of the planters are made of recyclable materials like plastic or metal and come either as a kit for smaller units or pre-planted and installed for larger wall spaces.

The unit seen here is available through the Gardener’s Supply Company online, but other companies like Motherplants, Green Living Technologies, and ELT Living Walls also provide larger scale solutions for homes, offices, restaurants and just about any building.

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Building with Bamboo

Thanks to the efforts of Yan Xiao, an engineering professor at the University of Southern California, bamboo can now be turned into structural beams to build and support houses and even bridges. Initially reserved for cosmetic and non-load bearing applications, bamboo is now a viable alternative to traditional hard wood lumber. Xiao’s invention, called GluBam, is a structural lumber made from laminated bamboo veneers that are pressed into beams. The beams can be cut and handled like traditional lumber, but come from a rapidly renewable resource.

Yan Xiao’s GluBam is currently being used to construct classrooms and homes across China and was even used in a bridge in the town of Leiyang in China’s Hunan province. The bridge is the first ever to be constructed using structural bamboo and is a testament to the great strength and range of use that this new bamboo derivative has.

GluBam will also be a great aid to developing countries like China that have vast bamboo forests but lack more robust traditional hardwood resources. By transforming the bamboo stalks into manageable beams, GluBam can be used for a variety of applications and can perform just as well as its hardwood counterparts.

To find out more see GluBam’s feature in Popular Science

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Put a Little Hemp in Your Concrete

In Europe, the oft-stigmatized hemp plant is becoming a widely accepted, environmentally friendly alternative source to concrete or brick in the building industry, but sadly has yet to gain any real traction in the US market. Hemp based concrete, a mixture of aggregate hemp stalks, sand, lime and concrete, is becoming more widespread in Europe due to it being a rapidly renewable resource, its impressive thermal and sound dampening qualities and its small carbon footprint.

Hemp-based concrete cannot be used for load bearing walls but is still a very versatile material; it can be cast into blocks or in a solid mass around timber frames, and can even be sprayed onto many surfaces. It is extremely energy efficient and can be used in multiple applications including roof and under floor insulation, in casting solid walls and as wall filler around a timber-framed building.

The stalks of the hemp plant, once considered waste, are processed and used as a renewable, fast growing aggregate in the concrete. Hemp is an extremely hardy plant, requires little maintenance, pesticides or water but unfortunately has been mired in controversy do to its close ties with a certain close relative. Today, numerous companies like Tradical and Hemcrete are prospering in Europe and their hemp-based products have successfully been implemented in a wide range of projects. Like many large industries, America’s building industry is slow to accept and adopt new methods and technologies, but the promise of hemp-based concrete certain; its future in the US however is not.

To find out more visit www.americanlimetec.com

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