Sustainable Skyscraper?

radio: World Without Oil -- May 10

radio: 100 Mile Diet -- May 03

radio: TreeHugger Radio -- Archives

th top picks

* www.earthjustice.org

Read more...

* Newsletter Sign In Sign in for our daily and weekly Newsletter!

Read more...

Advertise here

from hugg

Hugg: Sign Up and Submit Your Green News!

* rooftops and walls go green

* Sensible Garden Designs

* Supreme Court rules against Bush in global warming case

* Plan for Big U.S. Offshore Wind Farm Passes Hurdle

* Supreme Court Rules Against Bush Administration On Emissions

* How to find an eco-realtor (and the home of your greenest dreams)

* North Dakota Announces Biggest Wind Farm

* Discovery Channel - In the Man's Life

* Supreme Court says EPA Has Right - Bush is Wrong

* Mile High Standards for Renewables

* Toolkit Introduced to Reduce Environmental Impact of Business Travel

* [ more > ]

th searches

* Global Warming

* Solar

* Bamboo

* Insulation

* Chocolate

* Gift Guide

* Biodiesel

* Ethanol

* Wind

* Bicycle

th comments

LAILANI PINCH said: "i thought we could do a john and yoko sitting in bed thing with yo..." [read]

david in bali said: "Wow, I'm starting to get the feeling that some people are getting a litt..." [read]

Ivan Minic said: "Who writes these things for him anyway?..." [read]

KK said: "Re the top list of items: (1) Is the home washing/dipe service e..." [read]

said: ""Arn't rice paddys a huge source of methane? So the impact of growing sa..." [read]

said: ""Bush loves cycling, is an avid cyclist." Alibet a clumsy one. <..." [read]

said: "Arn't rice paddys a huge source of methane? So the impact of growing sak..." [read]

th top picks

* Lester Brown, EPI

* The Union of Concerned Scientists

* Tamara Giltsoff, Live|Work

* Ron Dembo, ZeroFootprint

* Neil Chambers

* Nicholas M. Eisenberger

* Ted Owens, designer

Latest TH Radio

* TreeHugger Radio: The Supreme Court Rules on CO2, MIT Tak...

* TreeHugger Radio: A Conversation with Ed Begley Jr....

* TreeHugger Radio: Al Gore Testifies, Young Muslims and Ch...

Latest THTV

* HauteGREEN Salon -- Part Three 3:40...

* Convenient Truths - Servin' Save CO2...

* How to Buy Green Produce w/Marion Nes...

Self-Sufficient Skyscraper

by Matthew Sparkes, London, UK on 05.13.07

Design & Architecture

0%252C1020%252C867105%252C00.jpgGerman architect, Eckhard Gerber, wants to build self-sufficient office towers in Riyadh, Dubai and Bahrain that produce 100% of their own electricity supply. The first tower would be 68-storeys, making it the 22nd tallest building in the world, and he is currently in talks with potential investors for the $406 million project. The cylindrical shape presents the minimum surface area to the sun, and a solar shield covers 60 degrees of the building. This will reduce the need for air conditioning.

Seawater will be used to cool air, as well as three large cooling units in the building's cellar. The roof will house a 197 foot wind turbine and 161,459 square feet of solar cells. The additional energy requirements will be handled by a floating solar panel island which drifts in the sea, close to the tower. Any excess electricity will be used to extract hydrogen from sea water, which is used by fuel cells to generate power at night. :: Speigel Online

See also :: World's First Building-Integrated Wind Turbines :: Zero-energy Tower Could Rise in Guangdong, China