Research's IaaC - Students Research -

In order to transcribe “motion” to a static element, such as a tower, Kitaoka’s patterns and drawings, were the base for this skin proposal. This static graphics make use of the peripheral drift illusion principles, creating a motion sensation. Several simulations and attempts of transcribing the pattern onto the tower’s façade were made. Noticing a common element that repeated and scaled in many different ways, provoked a motion illusion sensation. The final proposal was obtained adjusting in a 3D environment an oval shape arranged within the tower’s contour, generating twisted iterations and parametric variations of a common element. Using a 3D printer at IAAC a model was created, in order to test its optical and spatial effects. The 3D model construction helped out to understand the structural properties and performance of the new skin. A series of belts between each group of ovals were designed to provide the structural strength to the powder based model. The 3D printing machine model requirements were very helpful to consolidate a single well composed model. This peculiar external finish proposal would differentiate the tower from the surrounding buildings not only by its shape, also by the extremely appealing skin.

An analysis of the existing dune patterns of the site, occurred due to the effects of the wind, showed linear dunes, located in three different angles and scales. The three angle patterns were translated to three types of densities, connected to the working activities, urban facilities and residential ,each one refering to each separate system of local and tourist people.The type and the intensity of the program activities were defined according to the social and economic developping strategy of the city, while their position on site was based on deformation tools, depending on the effects of the coast line, the port, the bus terminal and the airpot in the case of the locals\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' system, and of the coastline in the case of the tourists.Existing dune structures were analyzed in the aspect of their physical appearance, their wind behaviour and their tension of merging and creating complex types, in order to give to this natural element programmatic and density parameters.The hybrid units were chosen in the points of high density of activities and consist of a \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"hybrid tower\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"(a vertical transformation of the dune geometry) , an infrastructure dune applying the \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"foggara system\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" for the production of water and an accumulation of trees. These units are also the nodes of water(foggara system), waste (integrated circle of organic waste) and energy (wind mills) infrastructure. Team: Theodora Christoforidou, Karlo De Soto, Fani Natou, Fotios Vasilakis Directed by Vicente Guallart

How to produce energy from the sea? Starting from the rigid grid of Barcelona we understood the area of the project and the industrial area inside. By the opposite part we found the smoothed geometry of the biggest green area in Barcelona, Montjuic. It is characterized by a more natural landscape movement. In order to plan the housing for 10.000 people, the idea was to join the green area of Montjuic with the gray industrial area of the Port of Barcelona. Analysing self sufficiency in nature, one of the most important phenomena is the deciduousness in trees. The new natural grid will be able to receive as many houses as we want and the growth of the housing system is like the growth of leaves in the branches. When we don\\\\'t need houses we move them away leaving a green space, but when we need more houses we can fill the empty spaces in the new grid. Continuing the understanding of how a tree lives and produces energy, we introduced a nano-technological element, in order to bring the water from the sea, to desalinate it and than to produce energy. This microscopic element is called \\\\"carbon nano-tube\\\\". Carbon nano-tubes , an allotrope of carbon, are members of the fullerene structural family. The super smooth inside of the nano-tubes allow liquids and gases to rapidly flow through, while the tiny pore size can block larger molecules like minerals. Team: Gabriella Castellanos, Enrico Crobu, Ki hoon Nam, Alfonso Pezzi Directed by Willy Müller

Chrono_sufficiency is an attempt to expand the field for the discussion in terms of sufficiency and sustainability. Time is a very important factor that is constantly shaping our life. The built environment is usually thought as something that should last forever. But what about making structures that can be ungraded periodically? What about thinking not just in the building process but also in the unbuilding and in the way these structures can be disposed or recycled when they become obsolete?Translating a concept like chrono_sufficiency into a physical matter, or even further, into a project more than a challenge. To recognize the limits of the theme is also to understand the constant mobility of our lifes framed by architecture that acts as the main stage. Chrono_sufficiency is a wider argument to conceptually conduct a projectual strategy. The possibilities identify and define different fluxes that are translated into different velocities. Establish intelligent and efficient connections inside the project and with the city; proposing a dialogue through mobility. Team: Cristobal Bernal, Guillermo I.Lopez, Gabriel Ochoa, Abel Patacho Directed by Willy Müller

This is an observation of several cycles that happen in the city. This cycles are generated by the connection of the metro and by the fact that young people live far away from the center of the city.Plaza Catalunya is a center point in the city from where, the different points that connect the rest of the city, appear. The routes of mobility are open like fun.In the project there has been an effort to translate this movement of Plaza Catalunya creating a main plaza where this movement can generate a lot of dynamism in the neighbourhood, spread the different activities and create an interchange with living, leisure, commerce, education and transportation. How to Get to the Project Area?How to Move in the Project Area? One can access the Project Area by public transportation; metro, bus, and “teleferic”; and by private transportation; meaning cars and bicycles. There is only one main route for motor vehicles, that permits a reasonable walking distance in all the area of the project. Since young people use more public transportation and bicycles for means of mobility and since Barcelona has a problem with CO2 emission levels, our project promote the usage of bikes and ¨pure¨ public transportation. It also incorporates more green areas to help balance the CO2 cycle. Team: Lilieth Aparicio, Diego Camargo, Natalia Miranda, Honghao Zhao Directed by Willy Müller

A new concept of neighborhood in where the young creative are the protagonists. Is a city to fulfill the needs and desires of the young creative. The city is composed basically by neighborhoods that define one creative person. These neighborhoods are related one another by the public space that connects them. The complete city is formed by these different neighborhoods of different creative linked by the public space. In the port of Barcelona is placed this city with the motive to integrate the nature of Montjuic mountain to the sea, and at the same time opening this view of the city to other cities. Breaking a little bit with the industrial history that this port has. Team: Luz Escobar, Massiel Santos, Walee Phiriyaphongsak Directed by Willy Müller

The Aquascape machine is a system created to obtain water filtration through a process of sedimentation. It is developed through the study and definition of different rules of connectivity between systems of spheres organized in layers. The machine can have different behaviors through size variation of the spheres according to differentiated gradients. The population of spheres is treated like cavities and built up through a layering system of cardboard sheets in order to explore the prototype’s physical behavior of absorption, channeling and water storing. Team: Chiara Farinea, Giota Piperidou, Abel Patacho, Frosso Charalambous Dora Christoforidou, Fani Natou

Expansion & Contraction A mesh type structure or \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"weave\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" responds to internal and external activator \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"chambers”, which enables it to expand and contract. These movements were later constrained by a series of fixed and flexible joints, which enabled a more specific observation of the structure’s behavior. Depending on the placement of these “chambers” and also on some constraints rings that were applied either on the extremes or on the middle area, there were a series of variations and behaviors that could be appreciated and were mapped for the further development of the structure. Team: Gabriella Castellanos, Chrysokona Mavrou, Karlo De Soto, Fotis Vasilakis, Natlia Miranda, Cristobal Bernal.