黑洞社区

California Academy of Sciences (CAOS), San Francisco, California

In construction, LEED Platinum (tbc)

A 2.5 acre living roof, blanketed with 1.7 million native plants, is one of the outstanding features of CAOS. This facility replaces a previous incarnation of the Academy of Sciences. It is larger in total floor area but smaller in footprint, returning an acre of green space to the park. The planted roof will reduce stormwater run-off from the site by at least 50% 鈥� some two million gallons annually 鈥� and collected rainwater will be used for irrigation and other non-potable uses. The academy will be constructed from largely recycled and renewable materials including sustainably harvested timber and recycled steel. Demolition from the old building was recycled.

Seattle Central Library, Seattle, Washington

Completed 2004, LEED Silver

Water saving and recycling has extra benefits in the US, where building owners have to pay per litre of waste pumped back into the city sewers. Here, waste water is collected, treated and stored for reuse flushing WCs and urinals, while stormwater is harvested and stored in huge tanks for irrigation. The result is that almost no mains (potable) water is used for toilet flushing and two-thirds of the building鈥檚 total water use is recycled or captured rainwater. Other measures include automatic shut-off taps; meters to monitor irrigation water and detect leaks; and a drift eliminator system that recaptures fine mist in the cooling process in the cooling towers to increase water efficiency.

Oil company campus, Houston, Texas

In construction, LEED Platinum (tbc)

This is a 33,300m虏 building for gas traders at a major oil company in Houston. A large part of the environmental design was the use of extensive daylighting to the trading floors. However, the design had to eliminate any glare that might impede the use of multiple VDUs. Extensive solar studies and animations helped to shape and confirm shading effectiveness. Sun exposure and illuminance calculations ensured adequate daylight while keeping glare and solar ingress to a minimum. The energy impact of daylight was also studied and the resulting data was used in energy modelling and the design of electric lighting controls.

Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies, De Anza College

Cupertino, California

Completed 2005, LEED Platinum

This environmental studies centre could not be seen to perform poorly at any cost and subsequent results from monitoring have shown it deserves its Platinum rating. For instance, the 270m2, 30kW roof-mounted photovoltaic system has been proven to supply more than enough power to exceed the hourly electrical energy demand of up to 26kW for at least the four central hours of the day. This demand includes power to lights, ventilation fans, the electrical components of the boiler, and plug sockets. Predictions that the PVs will supply 50% of the building鈥檚 annual power appear to be in reach, with monitoring continuing.

Kresge Foundation HQ, Troy, Michigan

Completed 2006, LEED Platinum

Gaining LEED credits for 鈥榦ptimising energy performance鈥�, 鈥榞reen power鈥� and 鈥榯hemal comfort design鈥�, the raised floor air distribution and ground coupled heat pump system provide the Kresge Foundation with environmentally sound, efficiently distributed heating and cooling. Water passes through 40 bores driven to 122m below ground, where the constant 13潞C temperature heats or cools it depending on the season. This maximises the efficiency of heat pumps from which air is piped throughout the building at low level (17潞C) and extracted at high level. Savings are also made in the use of less ductwork and ease of maintenance to low-level fans.

Northern Arizona University Applied Research and Development 黑洞社区

Flagstaff, Arizona Completed 2007

LEED Platinum

Environmental measures at this dramatically curved research centre include low-pressure underfloor air distribution; photovoltaics; triple-glazed windows; and thermal mass. One of the most evident is the automated shade control system to the south facade. Orientated to capture the winter sun, this facade allows light to flood in and provide more than 75% of the lighting for occupied spaces. However, with light comes heat and the three-storey block required an active shading system to guard against glare and solar gain. The combined impact of these strategies is to reduce energy consumption by 89% compared with a typical building.

San Francisco Federal 黑洞社区, California

Completed 2007, LEED Gold

The radical architectural design of this building 鈥� a glass facade over-clad by a skin of offset stainless mesh panels 鈥搃s also an important environmental feature. The gap between the glazing and the steel cladding acts as a solar chimney. Heat from the sun warms the steel outer skin and the air trapped between it and the glass facade. The warm air rises up this vented stack, pulling cooler air through and out of the building via the open windows in the glazed facade. The effect is free air-conditioning. The building鈥檚 stainless steel skin also allows good daylight ingress while eliminating glare, cutting down on artificial lighting requirements by some 26%.