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Wind - a good friend of Architecture

12/28/2013

a building collapse due to the wind action

   Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale, it consists of the bulk movement of air. For a long time Architecture and Wind were used to be enemies. Architects have tried a lot to keep wind out of the ARCHITECTURAL EQUATION. Architects and wind have fought a lot in the design of skyscrapers. Wind have forced Architects and engineers to think of new mode of building design and construction, example the use of mass dumper and tubular design technology.


mass dumper in Taipei 101

   Apart from that, now days WIND is a good friend of architecture, it is used as a design tool, it can bring the form of the building, and also it can bring energy to the building. Below are some of the architectural projects which use wind as the stepping stone, not only an enemy to fight with;




 
Bahrain World Trade Center 


   
   The Bahrain World Trade Cente is a 240-metre-high (787 ft), 50-floor, twin tower complex located in Manama, Bahrain. The design firm of Atkins did not believe that the look of the project was enough, and felt that it was important to incorporate sustainability features into this design. They first attempted to bring in solar panels into the project, but found that the extreme heat conditions of Bahrain made it an unfeasible proposition. So they turned to a second option, and came up with an even more striking image, that of the three wind turbines, each supported by a 30-meter bridge spanning between the two towers.


   The two towers are linked via three skybridges, each holding a 225kW wind turbine, totalling to 675 kW of wind power capacity. Each of these turbines measure 29 m (95 ft) in diameter, and is aligned north, which is the direction from which air from the Persian Gulf blows in. The sail-shaped buildings on either side are designed to funnel wind through the gap to provide accelerated wind passing through the turbines. This was confirmed by wind tunnel tests, which showed that the buildings create an S-shaped flow, ensuring that any wind coming within a 45° angle to either side of the central axis will create a wind stream that remains perpendicular to the turbines. This significantly increases their potential to generate electricity.


Dynamic Tower


   The Dynamic Tower is a planned 420-metre (1,378 ft), 80-floor moving skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, designed by architect David Fisher. Each floor will be able to rotate independently.This will result in a constantly changing shape of the tower. Each floor will rotate a maximum of 6 metres (20 ft) per minute, or one full rotation in 90 minutes.


   The entire tower will be powered from wind turbines and solar panels. Enough surplus electricity should be produced to power five other similar sized buildings in the vicinity. The turbines will be located between each of the rotating floors. They could generate up to 1,200,000 kilowatt-hours of energy. The solar panels will be located on the roof and the top of each floor.
Pertamina Energy Tower

  
    Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) has unveiled a 99-story tower planned for the Rasuna Epicentrum neighborhood in Jakarta.  

   According to SOM, “Pertamina Energy Tower is the world’s first supertall tower for which energy is the primary design driver. Gently tapering towards a rounded top, the tower opens up at the crown, revealing a ‘wind funnel’ that will take advantage of the prevailing winds and increased wind speeds at the upper floors to generate energy. 
   This does not mean that we have to take wind as a friend only, NO, it means we have to consider wind actions to our buildings but also  to use it as a design tool - it can give us the form, shape, energy and so much more if it is considered in the initial stage of design. Wind is a  gift for Architecture.

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