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Living Technologies

Ok, so of course coming fresh off the plane from the Living Future Conference in Seattle has really got me excited about the best and brightest in green building.

I will be sharing lessons learned , case studies, and knowledge nuggets in several posts. And sorry for falling off the map for so long to all my readers- life happens, eh?

So one of the most interesting innovations I learned about at the conference is the BIQ house in Hamburg, Germany. This is a multi-story apartment building that is completely powered by algae!

Algae sits inbetween panes of glass, eats carbon dioxide and sunlight, and produces oily algae that are digested by the building to create power. Neat huh? This building is a pilot/prototype but just opened several weeks ago.

This building brings up a lot of interest in algae for it's many uses. i've seen explorations in bioluminescent algae for street lighting, algae grown for biofuel for transportation, algae for wastewater treatment, and now to power an entire building. Besides sequestering carbon, different kinds of algae have different oil contents and can be utilized in different ways.

Isn't it incredible to think that during this building's lifetime, it will not only produce zero carbon emissions, but will actually absorb emissions in the city to feed itself and provide shelter for humans as well? Why didn't we think of this sooner??

If Germany can make this technology work, certainly our equally sunshine-short New Jersey and New York areas can find strength in these new technologies. Running on algae power would make this a truly living building!

For more information on the BIQ house, check out their website at: 
This Link here

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 20, 2013 at 2:47 PM

    Could you explain "Digested by the building"?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Casey Cullen-WoodsMay 22, 2013 at 9:17 AM

      The building website can better describe their particular system. But along the same lines of anaerobic digester, methane digesters, etc. They combust material and make power.

      Delete

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