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Architecture Thesis Prep School of Architecture Dissertations and Theses

12-2015

Breathing Architecture
Yichao Kang

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Kang, Yichao, "Breathing Architecture" (2015). Architecture Thesis Prep. Paper 314.
http://surface.syr.edu/architecture_tpreps/314

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 YICHAO KANG
Title of Thesis
Subtitle of Thesis

Contention: became to be designed integrated with the

Breathing architecture use the physical nature property, such as the wind channel and
property of nature to solve the problem from the new material.
environment and replace the traditional The envelope, the form and the structure were
mechanical system of the existing building in changed to fit the nature property.
Beijing.Architecture is the expression of the
nature and interaction with people.
Controlled by Nature
It is a system with emotion. Architecture should conform the property
of the nature for saving energy and solve
the environmental problem. In this situation,
Traditional architecture solve the architecture will provide the intuitive sense
problem from the environment according of nature to user.
to its mechanical system, such as
boilers,chillers,pumps, heat exchangers and Architecture is the expression of the nature.
ventilate. It against the nature property to
provide comfortable living space. In this way,
a lot of energy was used by operation and
product pollution to environemnt.
Unfortunately, cause of the crazy real
estate developement and economical
situationmost architecture built in Beijing use
the traditional mechanical system, especially
for the residential building.

Control Nature
These architectures were changed the on
facade or element for saving energy. Although
the mechanical system is still the principal
method to control the living environment, but
the partial function of mechanical system was
replaced.

Control Nature/Utiliz Nature

Just change the facade cannot satisefy the
requirement of saving energy. Architecture

1 Advisor: NAME OF ADVISOR 2

Breathing Architecture
Syracuse University School of Architecture
Thesis Prep Yichao Kang
Contention:

Breathing architecture use the physical

property of nature to solve the problem
from environment and replace the tradi-
tional mechanical system of the existing
building in Beijing.

Architecture is the expression of the

nature and interaction with people.

It is a system with emotion.

Content

1.contention

2.Pollution Haze

3.Addition

4.Algorithm

5.Interaction

6.Site Analysis

7.Solution
 Pollution Haze
Pollution Haze is a huge air quality problem in
China from 3 years ago. It is the combination
product from factory pollution and poisonous
substance. It is constituted by normal haze and
industrial pollution, such as particulate matter,
nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide. The particulate
matter which is smaller than 2.5mm could damage
the human health according to the respiratory tract
and cause disease, such as asthma, cerebral
hemorrhage and cancer.
 %
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The average annual concentration of PM 2.5 Beijing in 2014,
There is no effective solution to protect people in this disas-
ter. The best way to avoid the pollution haze is hide in the
building and close the window. People have to stop the
outside activities in winter because the pollution is heavy
from October to April.

Architecture should not just be regarded as the "safety island".

60 67.5 75 82.5 90 97.5 105 112.5 120 Since many years ago, more and more architecture shoulder the
responsibility to solve the problem from environment.

0-35 healthy living 35-60 mild concentration 35-60 middle level pollution 150-500 hazardous
Traditional architecture solve the problem from the
environment according to its mechanical system,
such as boilers,chillers,pumps, heat exchangers
and ventilate. It against the nature property to
provide comfortable living space. In this way, a lot
of energy was used by operation and product
pollution to environemnt.

Unfortunately, cause of the "crazy" real estate

developement and economical situationmost
architecture built in Beijing use the traditional
mechanical system, especially for the residential
building.
Control Nature

These architectures were changed the on facade

or element for saving energy. Although the
mechanical system is still the principal method to
control the living environment, but the partial
function of mechanical system was replaced.
 Mashrabiyya

Light sensor
Electrical system to control nature ventilation

The Arab World Institute is famous for its fantastic

facade. This high technology facade controled by
electrical system and inspired from the traditional
arabian envelope. There is a lot of light sensors
intalled on the facade which were designed for air
ventilation, shading and private protection in terms
of visualization. But this facade just work for 6
months because of its noisy and high operation
fee.

Arab World Institute

Architects: Jean Nouvel, AS.Architecture-Studio,

Location: 1 Rue des Fosss Saint-Bernard, 75005
Paris, France
Date: Built in 1987
 enclosure glass

cast-iron truss
air ducts

ferro-cement leaves

gallery task lighting

Integrated traditional mechanical system and

mannual operation to control nature.

Menil Collection Museum of Art is another great

example which solve the problem from daylight-
The Menil Collection ing and air ventilation at the same time.

Cause of the requirement of the client, this

Architects: Renzo Piano
Location: Houston, U.S.A
Date: Built in 1987
manual adjustment roof can be changed accord-
ing to the different exhibition.
This roof was enclosed by clear glass which
can block the UV rays. Supported by iron truss
which was installed the air ducts in it. The most
important part is the manual adjustment leaves
which can change the angel to let the daylight
enter into the museum or reflect for shading.
There is also gallery task lighting under the leaves
used for special artwork.
Control Nature/Utiliz Nature

Just change the facade cannot satisefy the require-

ment of saving energy. Architecture became to be
designed integrated with the nature property, such
as the wind channel and the new material.
The envelope, the form and the structure were
changed to fit the nature property.
 Most importantly, the PV
facade actively generates Air intake taken from facade
when TFACADE>TS
electricity and heat
year-round.
......

The second skin Facade thermal

approach has the further Facade protects building from

strong winds to reduce
performance
improved reducing

environmental benefit of infiltration heat losses conduction losses

eliminating the need for

demolition and disposal of
the existing facade. The
new skin is a complex P.V. array generates power
from low angle sun
curving form comprised of
over 1,200 custom glass Building heat loss

and PV modules. One of preheats incoming air

the most complicated Solar gain re-emitted from

facade to preheat incoming
curtain walls ever fresh air

constructed, this project

will demonstrate that PVs
can perform in the most
demanding architectural
applications.

Winter operation

HEW Customer Center Hot air vents directly

to outside when
TFACADE>TS
Fresh air intake direct from
outside

Architects: Kiss & Cathcart Architects

Location: Hamburg, Germany Double facade penetrated
Balcony area
ventilated

Date: 2000
by intermediate operable
directly to
windows to allow natural
outside
ventilation

Air in facade picks up heat

The HEW customer center add an additional gain from P.V. cells and
existing facade and rises due

Facade with new material to modify the tempera-

to bouyancy

ture in different season. Cause of the nature ventila-

tion, the pannels on the facade were changed the P.V. arrays provide shading
and power generation

angle follow the air channel. Planters provide

additional thermal mass

Facade permeable at lower Foliage provides

levels allows fresh air to be additional shading
drawn into atrium

Summer operation
 modify the
temperature and
the daylighting

space under
ceiling use for
nature ventilation

create nature
ventilation

space between
floor use for
nature ventilation

Federal Building San Francisco

Architects: Thom Mayne of Morphosis
Location: 90 Seventh Street, San Francisco, CA
Date: 2007

The Federal Building in San Francisco use the

mannual control and Building management
system to provide nature and normal ventilation in
different floor of the building. Create nature
ventilation in floor and the ceiling for human
comfort. Part of this building already abadoned
the mechanical system for ventilate.
 wind flow
Ventiform 30 St. Mary Axe
Architects: Foster and Partners Architects: Foster + Partners
Date: Designed in 2002 Location: London, UK
The Ventiform research project was an attempt to integrate an electricity- generating wind
Date: 2004
turbine into a mixed-use, high-rise building. Its name was inspired by ventifacts, rocks that
are carved into aerodynamic forms by windblown sand....... 30 St. Mary axe, the Greater London Authority Build-
The arodynamic form of the building enhances the energy-generating capability of the
turbine, increasing the buildings self-suficiency. ing, which has the significant symbol for air ventilation,
use wind channel to design the whole building, the
form, structure and interior space. The oval form is
better than general cubic building for wind flowing.
The atriums of this building was constructed by differ- atrium
ent circle floors which was changed 5 degree in each
one. These atriums working for increasing the wind
speed to form the interior ventilation. This building is a 5 degree
good project which was combine the wind-driven
ventilation and the stack ventilation.
the ventiform experiment project change the
After a short time. This building stoped working.
whole architecture form for wind power genera-
First, the wind flowing in the interior space too directly
tion.
so that make people uncomfortable.More and more
people block the wind in each floor. Second, the
louvers which were installed on the atriums, some-
times do not working and broken. But in this project,
the nature property---wind channel, became an "algo- increased the wind speed
rithm" in architecture Design.
Controlled by Nature

Architecture should conform the property of the

nature for saving energy and solve the environmen-
tal problem. In this situation, architecture will
provide the "intuitive sense" of nature to user.

Architecture is the expression of the nature.

Dustyrelief

Architects: R&Sie(n)
Location: Bangkok, Thalande
Date: 2002

Dustyrelief, use the hairiness facade to collect the

dust in the air according to electrostatics system.
The "dirty" facade which symbols the Exacerbating
climate contrast with the interior block to express
the environment problem and the local society. The
change of the facade, I mean the shape and the
color are random and controled by dust.
unplug office building use sloar panels to get
energy for the operation. In this project, the
designer regard the solar panel as an "algorithm"
to observe the deformation of the reactive facade
to respond to contact with solar energy.

The architecture is the result of the radiation.

 The whole of the sculpture will appear to be very
slowly breathing.
From John Grade

Breathing Wall: One Hundered and Eight Installation Kinetic Sculpture:

Moves And Changes According To The Weather
Artist: Nils Volker Artist: John Grade
Date: 2010 Date: 2013
Although each plastic bag is mounted stationary the sequences of inflation and deflation create the impression of lively and moving Weather sensors placed on the roof of the center feed back to the coil, causing it to move and shift in response to wind direction and
creatures which waft slowly around like a shoal. But as soon a viewer comes close it instantly reacts by drawing back and tentatively change luminosity in response to changes in temperature.
following the movements of the observer. As long as he remains in a certain area in front of the installation it dynamically reacts to the The design of the coil is inspired by a microscopic marine plant called coccolithophore, with each flute representing an individual
viewers motion. As soon it does no longer detect someone close it reorganizes itself after a while and gently restarts wobbling organismas these brighten or dim and shift around the sculpture will look like its alive.
around.

From the Artist, Nils Volker

Breathing Wall, a facade controled by electrical This is a Project Moves and Changes according to
system, convey the flowing of the wind according the Weather. It provide the "intuitive sense" of
to the air bags. Also react the human performance nature to user and make user feel the weather
when people come clolser. It is a medium for directly according to this "architecture"
human and the nature.
Buildings That Breathe:
Doris Sung's living architecture
Architecture: Doris Sung

dynamic, "breathable" exteriors that can regulate

the temperature in buildings the way human skin
regulates body temperature consuming zero
energy and requiring no switches or other controls.
Hygroskin Meteoroawnaitive pavilion
Artist: Oliver David Krieg, Steffen Reichert
Location: Permanent Collection, FRAC Centre Orleans, France, 2011-13

The project HygroSkin Meteorosensitive Pavilion explores a novel mode of climate-responsive architecture.
While most attempts towards environmental responsiveness heavily rely on elaborate technical equipment
superimposed on otherwise inert material constructs, this project uses the responsive capacity of the material
itself. The dimensional instability of wood in relation to moisture content is employed to construct a metereosensi-
tive architectural skin that autonomously opens and closes in response to weather changes but neither requires
the supply of operational energy nor any kind of mechanical or electronic control. Here, the material structure itself
is the machine.
......

Nature has evolved a great variety of dynamic systems interacting with climatic influences.
Breathing Architecture

In conclusion, breathing architecture is designed

integrated with the physical property of nature to
provide the cheaper and zero energy solution to
solve the environment problem.It is the expression
of nature and controlled by nature. Also make
people feel the change of the climate directly.

It is a building with emotion.

Site Analysis
 110

105
New building for each year in First-tier Cites in China
(Beijing, Shanghai, etc.) 100

95

8
90
45%
7 40%
85
6 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
29%
5 22%
Real Estate Business Index
17%
4
15% 14% 12%
11%
7%
3
5%
3%
2 1%
-4%
5%
1 100.00%
-11%

0 80.00%
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
60.00%

40.00%
Reference: Research Department of China International Capital Corporation Limited
20.00%

0.00%
The Area of New Building (hundred milion-square-meter)
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
On Year-On-Year Basis (median) -20.00%

-40.00%

Saleable Area Cumulative Year-On-Year

Sales Income Cumulative Year-On-Year

Because of the "crazy" real estate development since 10 years 15.00%

ago, there is a lot of high rise building with traditional mechanical 14.50%
system built in there. According to the real estate analysis, the best 14.00%
solution is change the existing building rather than build new 13.50
building. 13.00%
12.50%
12.00%
11.50%
11.00%
10.50%
10.00%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Real Estate ROE

Industry Average ROE
Solution
Architecture: Wangjing Center
Location: Beijing, China
Architecture: Wangjing Center
Location: Beijing, China
Architecture: Wangjing Center
Location: Beijing, China
Section A-A

Original Mechanical System

 AC AC AC AC AC AC

AC AC AC AC
AC AC

AC
A A

AC
AC

AC AC AC AC
AC AC

AC AC AC AC AC

Typical Plan of Wangjing Center

Original Mechanical System

 1. Normal shape with out smog

2. Collect the dust

3. Change the shape cause of the weight and wind

4. Full with wind

1 2 3 4 5. hairiness interior

6. Collection of the dust

7. Use the original Mechanical Space to transfer the dust

7
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