Students of ČVUT in the final of the Solar Decathlon global competition

What does it look like when architects compete with the sun? They don't need athletic shoes or solar-powered stopwatches for that. Since 2002, when the first Solar Decathlon was held in Washington, university teams from around the world have been competing every two years in the design and construction of energy self-sufficient solar houses. The students manage the project themselves, securing funding and constructing the houses with their own efforts.

The constructions developed on university grounds are transported to the USA for the final exhibition, where they are evaluated in ten disciplines—similar to an athletic decathlon. Competitions include energy balance, indoor environment quality, and suitability for the regular real estate market, among others. Students present their competing houses to the public, and the exhibition is accompanied by a series of workshops, expert conferences, and lectures.

This year's 6th edition of the Solar Decathlon has moved to Orange County Great Park in California. The aim of this prestigious international competition organized by the U.S. Department of Energy is to promote the use of solar energy and new efficient technologies in architecture and construction.

“A space where the walls, roof, and even the furniture are made of compressed air,.....an environment with healthy indoor air, where people will be in direct contact with the earth and the sky...,” so dreams in 1958 about “aerial architecture” the French artist and performer Yves Klein.
The concept of AIR HOUSE can be described in two words by the ČVUT team: BOX – MEMBRANE. BOX as a reference to the tradition of minimal apartments of the Czech architectural avant-garde of the 1920s, prefabricated and mobile. MEMBRANE as a bearing structure, high-tech, intelligent skin.
The design works with contrasts and merges them into a new and functional whole. The house has minimal dimensions yet offers generous living space and comfort. The solid prefabricated box contrasts with the light membrane that adapts to the needs of the users. To the south, the house opens with a panoramic window that connects the interior with a shaded terrace, while from the north, it offers only a door for entry.
The layout is clear and functional. The wooden part integrates the technological and social background, including appliances and a bedroom. The box is easily transportable, with dimensions corresponding to those of shipping containers. Its construction uses solid wood panels, a popular technology in the Czech Republic for CO2 neutral sustainable construction. The PEFC certificate guarantees the use of quality wood from forests managed sustainably. Sheep wool is used as thermal insulation, a traditional, health-safe, natural material.
The wooden box is complemented by a lightweight membrane structure. The membrane as "architectural skin" integrates all functions - it is load-bearing, thermally insulating, transmits light, generates electrical energy, and provides shade. The self-supporting structure made of ETFE membrane cushions is designed as a double façade. Air flows in the space between the cushions, which is heated or cooled as needed and regulated using flaps in the exterior layer. The translucent membrane maximizes the use of natural light, reduces electricity consumption, and facilitates a new and unusual connection with the surroundings.
AIR HOUSE utilizes both passive (orientation, energetically advantageous compact shape) and active solar systems. Photovoltaic panels and vacuum tube solar collectors are placed on the roof of the wooden box. Photovoltaic cells are integrated directly in the roof membrane cushions. The installed PV output accounts for charging an electric vehicle. The shading of the house is a reflective print on the membrane, the intensity of which is variable and responds to the cardinal directions. The solid wooden floor naturally balances the fluctuations of the thermal-humidity climate.
The ETFE membrane is 100% recyclable, and other materials are chosen in the spirit of cradle to cradle philosophy. The used natural materials will naturally improve the quality of the indoor environment and affect all human senses.
The cleverness of the BOX - MEMBRANE solution lies in the low weight of the house, its compactness, easy transport, and quick construction—it is enough to unfold and inflate. Its use is applicable wherever time, land, and finally money comes into play. Housing for a young couple or seniors, or temporary housing during natural disasters.
The concept of the AIR House, with which the students of the Faculty of Architecture and the Faculty of Civil Engineering enter the competition of university teams, is simple yet innovative. The participation of the ČVUT team in the Solar Decathlon 2013 will be a unique opportunity to promote green technologies and construction, as well as to present architecture as a discipline where versatility, comprehensive design, and multidisciplinary collaboration score points. For the Czech Technical University, it offers a chance to present itself as a leading European research institution capable of standing up to global competition.


More information
about the Solar Decathlon competition HERE;
about the ČVUT project HERE;
Facebook Team Prague HERE