Project Dome is a design proposal submitted to this year’s Land Art Generator Initiative design competition, a contest that solicits ideas for constructible regenerative architecture in Copenhagen. Designed by Tony Thomas of Rayworks Design Studio, M. Ephraim Thomas, and Saleena Thomas, Project Dome pulls out all the stops by proposing a design that harnesses power from four major renewable energy sources: solar, wind, underwater current, and biomass.
In addition to generating clean energy, the multi-purpose Project Dome also houses a museum, exhibition center, and gallery within its four floors. Located on the island of Refshaleøen in Copenhagen, the building will also include a visual library that showcases the island’s shipyard history and industrial past. A Viewing Deck at the apex of the dome offers spectacular views out towards the post-industrial harbor and is clad with semi-transparent PV panels.
To harness wind energy, the Project Dome is topped by a giant 5MW central vertical axis wind turbine that sports sculptural blades made from lightweight carbon fiber composite and can generate up to 2500 MWh of electricity annually. In between the dome apex and the base of the wind turbine, the architects have added a pine cone-shaped glass structure fitted with thin transparent tinted PV panels and light sensitive technology similar to the dimming window glass used in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. When exposed to sunlight, the “GlassPine” changes color and creates atmospheric interior lighting with the help of thin strips of LEDs.
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A biogas CHP plant, which is also topped by PV panels, is installed at the rear of the site to facilitate easy transportation of raw materials. To educate the public about the plant’s energy production, the designers wrapped the structure in a transparent metal-glass facade. On the opposite end of the site sits a floating cafe topped with a semi-transparent colored solar array organized in the shape of leaves. Eight integrated Stirling Energy Systems with concentrated PV systems surround the cafe and generate around 270 MWh of electricity annually. Two units of advanced underwater turbine-generator systems harness undercurrent energy without disturbing the marine ecosystem.
+ Land Art Generator Initiative 2014
Images via Joseph Alex
