HALE PILIHONUA A Sustainable and Floatable Home
Hale Pilihonua Designed to address residential needs in Hawaii's tropical climate, the University of Hawaii's semi-monocoque house, named Hale Pilihonua, is a sustainable and affordable solution for middle-income homebuyers. Hale Pilihonua, meaning “a built structure connecting earth and land”.
The shell, or semi-monocoque, structure is: Made of bio-based, fiber-reinforced polymer Strong and lightweight A tight, well-insulated thermal envelope Resistant to damage from corrosion, termites, rot, and floods, which are common in tropical environments Highly buoyant and able to float in the event of flooding Insulated with Low-E glass to reduce heat loss at night. The house's exterior structure consists of louvers that provide daytime shading, water-cooled photovoltaics that harvest energy, and solar thermal collectors for hot water. Additional sustainable innovations featured in Hale Pilihonua include phase-change material for thermal storage, intelligent occupancy sensing, and energy-conserving lighting controls and entertainment. The functional nature of Hale Pilihonua is demonstrated by an integrated aquaponics system that both enhances the atmosphere and supports sustainable food production.
SOLAR PANELING Solar paneling is integrated into a canopy of panels and shading louvers that cloaks the main structure of the house, harvesting energy, filtering daylight, and giving the house its distinctive form. Supported by a free-form space frame connected to the shell of the main structure, the canopy is doubly curved and smoothly morphs from one end of the house to the other. The precise form and dimensions of the canopy were engineered for optimum solar-collection efficiency within the boundaries of the desired aesthetic, and the resulting canopy-integrated solar-panel array was found to represent the best compromise between aesthetic and functional performance.
OTHER SUSTAINABLE FEATURES Insulation mounted on a thermally broken steel frame and sandwiched between two layers of fiber-reinforced polymer skin constitutes a translucent yet well- insulated tubular shell that enables natural daylighting of the entire house without sacrificing thermal performance. The natural lighting of the house can be controlled by the external canopy of operable louvers. Thermally broken aluminum- frame opening glass walls at both ends of the shell can be opened to take full advantage of natural cross ventilation.
OTHER SUSTAINABLE FEATURES When mechanical climate control is necessary, a high-efficiency water- source heat pump connected to a 1,500-gallon tank of water and phase- change material located under the floor (which also serves as ballast to resist overturning in high wind) supplies conditioned air into the living space through diffusers in the floor. High-efficiency LEDs embedded in the shell can be controlled using motion tracking and recognition technology to make the shell glow with a desired brightness—a technology both convenient and energy-efficient. In addition, the house is constructed from long-lasting materials that are resistant to rot, corrosion and insects—common problems in the tropics.
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