As I was browsing the internet I came across an interesting article that caught my attention on the Science Daily website about a design for smarter, more sustainable, buildings. The University of Arizona’s Solar Declathon team created this house that is 800-square-foot and completely solar powered. The house is located at the National Mall in Washington D.C. A very interesting and new energy efficient “signature mechanism” in the Declathon house is a water-filled Trombe wall. The water is actually used as a solar conductor. "The principle," Hall explained, Sunlight comes through the glass and the radiant heat is absorbed by the mass and warms the air between the glass and the wall.” When nighttime arrives the air is still trapped inside of the house because it cannot get outside of the glass. This allows for longer use of the heat. Another aid used to keep the heat in and not lose that energy are the vacumn-sealed panels that are made out of recycled plastic bottles. Another great feature of the Declathon house was that the roof alone supplied eight kilowatts of energy. Not only was that surprising but the article also mentioned that eight kilowatts of energy is twice the amount of energy needed to power a much larger home. The roof alone!! I was so surprised to hear that a college was actually the ones leading a sustainable smart house. I am glad. I just could not believe that a house said to have all the conveniences the average American has could be completely solar powered. Also I thought the use of water as a solar conductor to be pretty cool!! I never knew that my recycled plastic bottles could help power a home. This will definitely increase my incentive to hold on to my plastic bottles and continue to recycle them. The picture I chose is the University of Arizona mascot for their efforts for sustainability Go University of Arizona Declathon Team!!
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