Technology
A four-story, 15-unit residential building under construction
in Hamburg, Germany, will use of bioreactors to generate algal
biomass that can be harvested and used to produce energy.
German Building to
Test Algae-Filled
Facade as Source of
Shade and Energy
EFFORTS TO generate energy at he site of residential buildings have thus far tended to focus on
the use of photovoltaic panels. However, an experimental building under
construction in Hamburg, Germany,
will test a new approach, one that relies
on biomass grown from algae in reactors located on the structure’s exterior.
If successful, the approach could facilitate the exploitation of renewable energy sources, including the generation of
biomass and the collection of solar heat
for on-site use.
The four-story, 15-unit residen-
tial structure is being constructed in
Hamburg as part of an international
exhibition organized by IBA Hamburg
GmbH and now seven years old de-
voted to innovative approaches to the
design and construction of urban ar-
eas. The building will feature the use
of the world’s first “bioadaptive fa-
cade,” which will comprise a series of
photobioreactors filled with liquid in
which algae grow. The fast-growing al-
gae will respond dynamically to solar
conditions, imparting a shimmering
green facade that will help to screen the
building when sunlight is available and
shade is desired.
[36] Civil Engineering JANUARY 2013
bioreactors, and the specialist facade
contractor Colt International GmbH,
a subsidiary of the Colt Group Limited,
of Hampshire, United Kingdom.
Within the bioreactors, green algae
of the genus Chlorella will grow in response to sunlight, as well as to inputs
of nutrients and carbon dioxide. The
bioreactors will generate algal biomass
that can be harvested and used to produce energy. Algae will be removed
from the bioreactors automatically by
means of flotation. The resulting biomass will be taken to an off-site facility and transformed into methane. Although this step could be undertaken
on-site by means of certain hydrothermal conversion processes, it is “not yet
cost efficient” to do so, Wurm said.
The residential building constructed
for the International Building Exhibition will include 129 bioreactors, each
2,600 mm high, 700 mm wide, and
approximately 90 mm deep. Each bio-reactor will be a “multiple glazing unit
comprising three cavities and outer layers of laminated safety glass,” Wurm
said. Algae will circulate within the
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