From green buildings - to Green Planet

Amazing video from NOAA Environmental Visualization Laboratory

It is so realistic - you almost want to touch it, but also want to be careful not to damage this fragile globe!

CaGBC Conference: Lessons Learned - Part 2

Another very important lesson, which confirmed what I have been becoming increasingly convinced in from my own experience - THERE IS PRACTICALLY NO PERFORMANCE MONITORING after the building or system has been commissioned. All kind of reasons can be put forward for that - from lack of time, resources to confidentiality considerations. However, sustainable technology and "green" industry can not evolve or even properly function without a feedback loop ! Lack of consistent real-life data is a major factor slowing down progress of the industry.

Here is what I propose should be done. A network of performance (a.k.a. "green" or "sustainable") buildings and facilities should be created. They should be connected via centralized online data and performance optimization repository in a "smart info-grid" of a sort. The data obtained from each node (facility-member) should be presented in (or translated into) the universal consistent format and made available for other facility-members for comparison, benchmarking and cross-reference.

One of the good examples of guidelines for implementing the intelligent network infrastructure is Unified Access Network Design based on the CISCO concept of Borderless Campus Architecture.

University and college facilities, such as CIRS at UBC in Vancouver and Centre of Excellence at Okanagan College in Penticton, BC must collaborate with the industry on creating such a network and become first nodes of such network. The network should utilize Systems Architecture principles of  expandabikity (i.e. allow adding new nodes), and evolvability (i.e. allow seamlessly adding new functionality). This can become a major factor in propelling the sustainable (high-performance, "green", alternative) technology and buildings industry, which is currently threading the water.

CaGBC Conference: Lessons Learned - Part 1

Back from the Canadian Green Building Council Conference in Vancouver.

From the large number of presentations, speeches and exhibits one conclusion jumps out:
everyone and everything is focused on commercial buildings - business office, hotel etc. 
NO ONE IS LOOKING AT THE SMALL RESIDENTIAL SECTOR  as if doesn't exist !

Of course, it is much easier to get noticed with a "green" high-rise tower in the downtown of a big urban centre than with a performance home in a rural community. But should we forget not - more than 90% of Canadian territory is not cities. Even if the majority of Canadian population is concentrated in the cities, it is not where our food, oil, gas, gold, lumber and other resources come from. Canadian economy heavily relies on the natural resources industry. Shouldn't we pay special attention to efficiency and sustainability of homes for people living there?

Perhaps not everyone knows, but tourism is a second largest contributor into Canadian economy. It should not be too surprising however, taking into account that Canada is the world's second largest country by territory with a vast geographical diversity, number of resorts and national parks. The importance of this sector is even growing with increasing popularity of heli-tourism, eco-tourism etc.   

Hence the niche of a single-family or small-to-medium size multifamily residential market with the smaller non-residential facilities like local schools, heath care centres, sport facilities etc, seems to be undeservedly abandoned.

The Performance Model Home concept attempts to address this deficiency.
Attractive architectural design, high-level of thermal efficiency, air-tightness, passive components like natural day lighting, combined with the efficient, cost-effective and non-polluting technology managed by a simple, reliable and user-friendly control system are all necessary elements of such a model. Add the maintainability, ability to service and upgrade or add system components (for example, with the new technologies as they become available), capability to continuously monitor and optimize performance - and you will have a perfect case for a System Architecture.     

At the core of the technology package are three components: optimized solar thermal system, supplemented by thermal booster and supported by a high-efficiency thermal storage.
The entire package is configured using ASPA program, allowing to choose the most efficient combination of the components. These components together with sensors and energy meters included in the feedback loop and integrated with performance home management system, at any time providing the maximum comfort for inhabitants of the home and the most efficient use of the equipment.  

Out Of Control ?

Worth reading whether you agree or not:  Out Of Control

The author talks about the problems with controls for performance (a.k.a. sustainable) buildings. I have seen it again in a number of most recent buildings with very high claims. The author calls for a disruptive technology. Perhaps, the solution is not in the disruptive technology, but in simpler, intuitive design and applying principles of systems architecture throughout conceive-design-implement-operate-evolve cycle.

One thing is clear: performance building has to be simpler and smarter.

Wind vs. Coal

Wind power contributes approximately 2% of total electricity in the province of Saskatchewan.

 

This is SunBridge wind power project at Gull Lake in South-Western part of Saskatchewan. The most efficient wind turbine typically generates only during 30% of the time. This particular location was chosen to take advantage of its strong and reliable winds. There are 17 turbines which are spread over 16 square kilometers to maximize exposure to these winds. Each turbine has a physical footprint of approximately 13 square meters.   

Wind is formed mostly by uneven heating of the Earth atmosphere. Wind turbine captures the kinetic energy available from the wind and converts it into electrical power.Wind power provides electricity without producing air or water emissions. Wind energy also helps conserve other natural resources such as coal, oil and natural gas. The wind power is a renewable source of energy because the wind and electricity it generates are constantly replenished by nature.   

The facility produces about 40 million kWh per year, enough to supply 5,000 households. It however is supplied mostly to the government buildings thanks to the 10-year government commitment to support "green" energy. 

  Each turbine:

- operates with wind speeds between 15 km/h and 90 km/h

- is mounted on a 65-meter tubular tower;

- has three-rotor blades making a total rotor diameter of 47 meters;

- has blades that tilt to an optimal angle to maximize the capture of wind energy;

- is rated to produce 660 kW of electricity;

- is designed to last 20 years. 

 

Clean Coal - is it for real ?

During the IEEE Conference in Regina we were given a tour to the Boundary Dam Power Plant - the first in the world coal-fired plant which has actually started implementing the much talked about "carbon-capture" technology.

 
Most of us, even those who are called electrical engineers, let alone those work at universities, have never been to an electrical power plant before.  We were impressed by the size of everything there. 

 

It was interesting to see the control rooms - they reminded me space flight control centres I have seen back in the USSR ...

 
Most of the technology is from the 60s.

Not as bad considering air traffic controllers until recently have been using technology from 30-s (and many of them still do). 

Traditionally, they used coal mined in the neighboring areas (which for the last hundred years had to be moved further and further - currently about 50 km away from the power plant). The coal is delivered by trucks to the plant, crushed and ground in several stages until it is converted into a fine powder. The powder is mixed with the air and forced into the furnace where it is ignited in creates a fireball. The furnace is surrounded with pipes carrying water, which is being heated to the steam at 2000 psi and 1005 degrees. Steam pushes turbines, which drive generators.  This is how it has done for more than a hundred years and this is how it is still done.

But then there is something else. The product of coal burning has been always thrown into the air.

But now they are doing quite interesting stuff. They retired the oldest (1959) and least efficient unit. The second oldest unit will be retired next year. Finally the 3rd unit is being refurbished and connected to the first in the world actual carbon-capture facility.  

This is the carbon-capture facility at Boundary Dam close to be competed. The facility will also remove sulfur dioxide and mercury out of exhaust. What is interesting about this proposition, is that the captured CO2 is going to be collected and SOLD for profit (it is used commercially for improving efficiency of oil extraction). This opportunity made a real difference and created a business case - no government subsidies - which would not happen otherwise. Sulfur is also used to produce commercial sulfur acid.

I am not a big fan of fossil fuel-based energy, but I cannot disagree that they implemented a true system approach in the face of a serious challenge.
 

Performance Home design contest is a success

Ascent Systems Technologies in collaboration with Architecture & Technology Department of Thomson Rivers University in Kamloops conducted a contest of the students projects for the best performance home at Sun Peaks.

A number of different and interesting designs were presented for the contest.

 

Architecture Instructor of the class Dale Parkes announces the winners of the contest from the Sun Peaks Corporation.

The winner of the First Prize from Ascent Systems Technologies for the best Performance Home Design, Joe Dion-Croteau