MIT-based nonprofit STG International is looking to make isolated African clinics and schools much more self-sufficient with a new hybrid power and heat solar system. The unique system combines off-the-shelf technologies to provide electricity, hot water and space heating, with potential cooling as well. The heart of the system is a brilliant type of refrigeration cycle – instead of using hot refrigerant gases to remove heat, it uses heat to run a common compressor in reverse to make electricity. The unique solution does double and triple duty for a small African clinic, saving significant amounts of money on fuel.

Read the rest of MIT’s All-in-One Solar ORC to Provide Heat, Electricity, and Hot Water For African Communities

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Post tags: African Clinic, African solar, Magic Box, MIT solar thermal electric, solar hybrid, solar thermal electricity

Looking at the incredible examples of green architecture featured on Inhabitat, you may have wondered what kind of mechanical equipment is used for these homes. Solar Decathlon competitors, Passivhaus designs, and other high-efficiency houses rely on highly efficient mechanical systems — in addition to the construction and design of the buildings themselves — in order to reach the level of performance they achieve. Obviously, there is not just one system used everywhere, but a number of features common to many of these systems are now being assembled into single, combined unit systems – read on for a look at these “magic boxes”.

Read the rest of Magic Boxes: All-in-One HVAC Systems for Efficient Homes

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Post tags: cooling, Energy-Efficient Appliances, ERV, Green Building, green design, heating, high efficiency home, HRV, hvac system, Magic Box, mechanical systems, passive design, passivhaus, Sustainable Building, sustainable design

A new prefab from Jun Ueno brings a fun, modern aesthetic to accessory spaces for garden, courtyard or rooftop. The Magic Box is an extension room that can be used as an office, studio or serve any purpose that the user imagines. We haven’t gotten the whole scoop on how sustainable it is, but we can say that this creative foray into the design of a small prefab space makes prefab look a lot more spacious, interesting and appealing than the typical ‘Modern Shed’ style box.


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Post tags: contemporary version of the modern shed, detached rooms, digital fabrication, digital prefabrication, Jun Ueno, Magic Box, modern architecture, modern shed, non-linear prefabrication, Palos Verdes, Prefab Housing, The Magic Box gets creative with prefab