Architecture built and powered by the sun
Built by the Sun:
Built and then powered by the Sun’s heat, the SunGlass concept generates power by boiling seawater from the nearby Persian gulf with concentrated solar power (CSP). Steam, throttled through turbine generators, is recaptured as fresh water as it condenses along the insides of the generator cones (cooled by the seawater flowing through SunGlass’ skin enroute to the solar concentrator). This generated freshwater feeds the many cooling pools in the interior venue space of SunGlass, as it eventually trickles outwards to provide nourishment to the surrounding planted landscape. SunGlass is scalable along desert coastal regions. Entire coast lines of desert can become lined with green landscape as SunGlass cities are fused from the sand.
Reverse Desertification: SunGlass’ completed forms are reminiscent of desert dunes. The materiality of the fused desert glass is at once rough and striated like sandstone canyons, yet has a subtle translucency and gloss as if it were a glacier made of sand.
SunGlass as a catalyst for the desert: Born of sun and sand, SunGlass generates both electrical power and freshwater. SunGlass’ existence slowly transforms its site into a verdant garden space, offering a cooler microclimate for visitors with shade, pools and the evapotranspiration of the plants.
