AWARD

he Kitchen provides the campus in Shenzhen with
an organically triggered economy, by means of
algae. Focusing on bioplastics and alternative nutrients. Algae serves as an excellent raw material to supply or fuel the industrial process for plastic production. As it has many advantages such as a fast, high yield and the ability to grow in a range of inhospitable environments. Bioplastics provides the advantages of conserving fossil resources and reducing CO2 emissions, which make them an important innovation of sustainable developments and they can play a vital role as an environment friendly, biodegradable alternative compared to conventional plastics.

Photosynthetic MicroLab
THE ALGAE KITCHEN.
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Tutors: Enric Ruiz Geli & Mireia Luzàrraga.
Algae based biofuels are often quoted as the only plausible biofuel solution to the world’s oil crisis. But the economic viability of algae fuels is still in doubt. Exploring the production of nonfuel products such as bioplastics could play a major role in shaping the economics and viability of algal biofuel solutions
Algae Cycle
Video of an algae system immitating the performance in the Kitchen.
Algae System
The algae system setup immitating the performance in the Kitchen.

Algae System
The performance of the microalgae split up into 3 stages. 1 Growing, 2 Harvesting & 3 Output

Plan
Inspiration and function shown in plan with illustrations

he design was developed as a functioning system, harnessing the machinery of
the algal behavior to perform like nature does. By extracting and concentrating oil
into plastics, converting energy, and producing oxygen in life-sustaining ways. The Kitchen utilizes the algae to run its operating system using the biofuel produced on site and take in the distilled water as well as filtered nutrients provided by the water domes on site. The structure distributes the algae from the top where it photosynthesises before reaching the ponds in the landscape. The algae has a growing circle it goes through on site before being harvested and refined through different methods of drying or oil extraction.
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3D model of the Kitchen
Photosynthetic MicoLab surrounded by the other systems on site of the Shenzhen Campus. (farming belts and water domes)
Model
Concept model of the Algae Kitchen. Modelled using a circular waffle structure overlayed with casted silicon sheet and silicon tubes.
![Photosynthetic MicroLab [The Algae Kitchen] Thora H Arnardottir](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/bc1871_16b37823ed0545ee8c6f453a2c17fdcf~mv2_d_4961_10873_s_4_2.jpg/v1/fill/w_976,h_2140,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/bc1871_16b37823ed0545ee8c6f453a2c17fdcf~mv2_d_4961_10873_s_4_2.jpg)
IAAC, Self Sufficient Buildings.
Self Sufficient Buildings is a research studio at IaaC, Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia developed at Master in Advanced Architecture, MAA02 in 2016
See more on IAAC blog