UN Sustainable Development Goals Addressed
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Goal 9: Industry Innovation & Infrastructure
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Goal 13: Climate Action
2021 Global Design Challenge Finalist
This design concept was developed by participants in the Institute’s Global Design Challenge. The descriptions below are from the team’s competition entry materials.
Location: Bogotá, Colombia
Team members: Gabriela Bautista Rodríguez, Ana María Gómez Rodríguez, María José Gómez Rivadeneira, Nicolás Ricardo Adame Higuera, Sara Isabel Castro Martínez, David Santiago Casas Peña
Innovation Details
In a warming climate, many areas are offering residents two options to adapt to survive: air conditioning (which can be unaffordable) and migration. The HydroCanopy offers a low-cost, high-efficiency architectural façade system solution that responds to climatic conditions using passive control strategies that regulate solar radiation, ventilation, thermal inertia, and offers an evaporative cooling system. The design was inspired by two shared characteristics of local organisms of the unique tropical dry forest in La Guajira. The mucous s in the epidermis of some frogs and toads and the dynamic gradient of density and size of leaves in the canopy of trees both have a system of gradient layers used to regulate temperature, capture and store water, take advantage of solar radiation, and protect themselves from the wind. The team sought a positive economic and social solution by creating HydroCanopy to respond to the need for affordability and flexibility for its production and mass replicability, using low-cost, locally available materials designed for easy implementation and local .
Define the problem being solved. According to NASA, 2020 was the warmest year on record, and by 2030 the temperature could rise by a further 1.5 degrees C. Due to drought and desertification, 12 million hectares of fertile land are lost every year (23 hectares per minute); so by 2045, 135 million people will have to leave their homes, as their houses are not suited to climate change. La Guajira, Colombia has temperatures up to 42°C and periods of 7 months of drought per year and infertile soils. It’s characterized by poor building infrastructure and isn’t adapted to these harsh conditions. Out of the total population, 49.3% live in poverty and 19.5% in extreme poverty, leaving only two solutions, either unaffordable air conditioning or migration. This problem shows the need to adapt homes to climate change in a way that is affordable, easy, and versatile according to the climatic conditions.
What organisms/natural systems helped inform this design? This project is inspired by two characteristics of organisms located in the unique tropical dry forest in La Guajira: The mucous glands in the epidermis of anurans and the dynamic gradient of density and size of leaves in the canopy of trees. They have in common a system of gradient layers used to regulate temperature, capture and store water, take advantage of solar radiation, and protect themselves from the wind. The arrangement of leaves in the foliage of trees has a dynamic gradient of density and size that changes according to their position in the tree, which allows all leaves to take advantage of solar energy and adapt to wind flow. The mucous glands found in the epidermis of the anuran accumulate and secrete a substance that is spread on its skin to prevent dehydration and regulate its internal temperature when the external temperature rises.
What does this design do? HydroCanopy is a low-cost, high-efficiency architectural façade system which responds to climatic conditions using passive control strategies that regulate solar radiation, ventilation, thermal inertia, and offers an evaporative cooling system. It is a system of easy construction and implementation, structured by 3 modular grids with an orthogonal grid of 60x60cm, built in guadua and articulated by knots. It holds different protection mechanisms, organized in 3 layers: the first two layers are mobile and adapt to the environmental conditions perceived by the users. These two layers provide solar protection and regulate the passage of wind through mobile leaf shaped inspired blades, which decrease in size towards the interior of the system. The third and final layer is for thermal regulation and evaporative cooling, located in the inner part of the module. It uses a system of dynamic bags containing hydro-retaining capsules in its perimeter. These capsules release the stored water when the bag contracts, thus maintaining a constant cooling of the hot air passing through the module.
How does this solution address the problem or opportunity? Each layer within HydroCanopy responds to an environmental factor in dry, semi-desert regions with low rainfall. It adapts passively to outdoor environmental conditions and generates comfort inside the building. The two outer layers control the passage of light and wind currents. The last layer allows the cooling of hot air and the condensation of air humidity and water retention; according to the tests carried out, it was determined that HydroCanopy generates an environmental and internal thermal difference of up to 15°C. Taking into account the geographical context, the team sought a positive economic and social change. HydroCanopy responds to the need for affordability and flexibility for its production and mass replicability. Low Technology was chosen to ensure easy assembly and maintenance, using materials and techniques known and traditional from the region of La Guajira in Colombia.
Element: How compatible is this design with all surrounding living systems? Is it safe? How is it more sustainable than the alternatives? The Hydro Canopy system uses low-cost, locally available materials, including vegetable fibers, low in-built energy technologies and biodegradable materials, which reduce the polluting processes generated by current mechanical cooling systems which greatly affect the surrounding fauna. The panel is designed to incorporate manual techniques such as weaving and meshing to root it to the community’s knowledge. It is user-friendly, as the system is dynamic so it can be adapted or controlled to the level of comfort required. It takes into account the specific user and can solve their particular needs in terms of temperature, light, and wind.
(Re)connect Element: Describe how this innovation helped the team connect with the natural world. The Emphasis on Research and Technological Projects course at the National University of Colombia (NUC) has been studying Colombian ecosystems for several academic semesters in order to find technological solutions in architecture. In the last semester, the team focused on studying the tropical dry forest, based on the scientific research of the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute. The team at the Technological Research Laboratory (SINDU) at the National University of Colombia has been testing scenarios about nature’s strategies to manage water in extreme drought ecosystems and how it regulates its own temperature. Developing this solution allowed the team to explore the different characteristics inside Colombia’s tropical dry forest, as a unique ecosystem in the world. Nature inspired these architectural projects, leading the team to new strategies that are more efficient and friendly to the environment.
How were Nature’s Unifying Patterns or Life’s Principles applied to this design? Based on the natural elements in the environment, such as wind, humidity and temperature, the team achieved an improvement in the quality of life inside buildings. Hydro-Canopy is composed of dynamic panels easily adaptable to any climatic, social, or economic condition. Without the costly and complex technologies such as air conditioners, the team achieved the same effect. A mutually beneficial relationship was established between two natural strategies through a co-dependent multi-layer system. It uses information perceived by the user, changing according to their needs. It works without toxic materials and mostly from vegetable sources, being a carbon-positive invention. The team used local and abundant materials, and rarely scarce material when strictly necessary, designed for easy implementation and local adaptation with the communities. After multiple tests, the team arrived at this model that offers the best performance, taking into account the area, the edge effect, and thermoregulation.
