Zero carbon neighborhoods

Introduction

Masdar (from Arabic: مصدر) is an ecological city designed and located in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi "Abu Dhabi (emirate)") (United Arab Emirates), near the Abu Dhabi International Airport, so it has road connections with neighboring towns. It will be supplied by solar energy and its objective is not only to be sustainable but self-sufficient. The project, announced in 2006, has been designed by the Foster+Partners office, financed by the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) and Masdar (The Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company).

Emergence and evolutionary process of the project

The project began construction in 2008, after being launched by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed AL Nahyan in 2006. The first intervention was to build a perimeter wall to contain the strong winds and sand storms, which make the location a place with difficult conditions. The first part of the construction proposes the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, which together with the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) seeks to explore new forms of renewable energy, which in turn will be applied and used throughout the construction process of the project. Originally the city was to be completed in 2016, however, due to budget problems the work has been delayed. Likewise, the original initiative has faced certain obstacles that have reduced the expectations of the project. Now, although it continues to seek to be the most ecological city on the planet, it has a low carbon footprint and for the next stage of the project, LEED and BREAM certification will not be sought, but rather the PEARL certification launched in 2010 by the Arab Emirates. Currently the construction is still ongoing, so far a quarter of the city is functioning, bringing with it satisfactory results and in line with those expected, the transportation system, explained later, has already been launched, and the energy generation system (on-site energy generation network system with 10 MW photovoltaic panels) of the city generates even more than anticipated. Masdar is not the only project of this type underway, as eco-city model initiatives exist around the world, such as the BedZED neighborhood in London or the Dongtan city in China, which competes with Masdar in terms of size.

The site combines high-tech design and ancient construction practices to create a sustainable model.

Zero carbon neighborhoods

Introduction

Emergence and evolutionary process of the project

Concept

As an innovator in the area of smart cities, Masdar intends to surpass the sustainability principles proposed by One Planet Living by forcefully attacking its 10 points.

• - Zero carbon: generating 100% of its total energy from solar energy.

• - Zero waste: 99-100% diversion of waste from landfills, applying reduction, reuse and recycling strategies.

• - Sustainable transportation: natural means of transportation such as walking and cycling will be favored; an underground transportation system based on energy produced within the city will be implemented, eliminating the use of private vehicles.

• - Sustainable materials: architecture uses materials with a high possibility of recycling, that consume and have been produced with the least possible energy.

• - Sustainable food: all products consumed and sold will come from organic, sustainable and fair trade supplies.

• - Sustainable water: aims to reduce at least 50% of water consumption per inhabitant (in relation to 2006 consumption in the Arab Emirates) and ensure that 100% of wastewater is reused.

• - Coexistence of inhabitants and wildlife: animal species will be relocated or welcomed within the city.

• - Culture and heritage: architecture that integrates and recognizes local values.

• - Equitable and fair exchange: wages and working conditions, even from the moment of construction, that comply with those determined by international labor standards.

• - Health and well-being: supplying the city with equipment, facilities and even events that respond to the needs of all demographic groups.

The design proposes a compact, high-density, mixed-use city that will house the headquarters of the energy company Masdar and the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology. Its location was strategically chosen to generate efficient connection infrastructure with the center of Abu Dhabi and its airport, it will be the first city to completely eliminate the use of vehicles operated by fossil fuels. In addition, the design of the city offers a pedestrian space with a comfort zone achieved through passive systems.

According to the British firm, Foster + Partners, the objective of the urban approach is to be flexible, to be able to adapt to new emerging technologies, both during the construction process and during the life of the project. "While Masdar's design represents a specific response to its location and climate, the underlying principles are applicable anywhere in the world. In that sense it offers a blueprint for the sustainable city of the future."

Main features of the city

In Masdar's urban planning, urban planning, infrastructure and buildings are merged, that is, the city is thought of as a whole that follows the demands of a smart city. At the same time, the city's design relies on the following components to achieve the principles of sustainability with greater efficiency:

Integration: combining uses (housing, work and entertainment) to make mobility more efficient

Low height/high density: Compact the greatest number of homes without exceeding 5 floors in height

vibrant urban environment: focus on both public space, intermediate between buildings and the buildings themselves

pedestrian approach: encourage walking with streets that provide a comfortable environment

high quality of life: committed to stimulating a high quality of life by offering work and recreation spaces.

Urban planning takes into account the climatological characteristics of the place and seeks efficient development based on strategies already existing in Arab cities associated with new technology, such as:

• - The narrow streets, characteristic of Arab cities, will also be present in Masdar, since the main streets are 10.5 m wide and the others 8.5 m.

• - Wind chimneys that direct air inside buildings and to the streets. In the city there will be a "wind" tower to channel it to ventilate a public square at its base. The air will be cooled with water sprinklers.

• - Streets and public spaces are strategically oriented to take advantage of night breezes.

• - Presence of parks and squares that will be connected by a central tree-lined path in addition to building spaces protected from direct sunlight.

• - Around the city there will be large spaces for collecting solar energy through photovoltaic panels. Photovoltaic panels will also be installed on the roofs of buildings, where there will be green roofs and solar protection elements.

In the city center, movement is intended to be mainly pedestrian, but there is a sophisticated and non-polluting transport system made up of Personal Rapid Transport (PRT), Light Rail Transport (LRT) and Fast Freight Transport (FRT). These transports are essential to relate the new city with the existing ones, since Masdar is 25 km from the center of Abu Dhabi and 115 km from Dubai.

The PRT tries to avoid the use of private cars so it offers a type of electric individual cabin that allows a maximum journey of 7 minutes, will have 85 stations and will operate 24 hours a day all year round. The LRT follows the zero carbon concept and is an electric train system that departs from Masdar to the Airport, connecting the city to Abu Dhabi Island and other nearby areas, it will have 6 stations. The FRT, like the PRT, is an automated and electrical system but is intended for the transportation of food and merchandise.

The city intends to lead the production and use of renewable energy with the help of the company Masdar PV, founded in 2008, which has a leading role in the implementation of photovoltaic cells in Masdar.

To heat the water they will use evacuated tube collectors (ETC) and a deep well geothermal system that will also be used for cooling.

Energy production will be distributed in thin-film monocrystalline photovoltaic panels that will generate 380,000 MWhe/year, parabolic trough panels whose Concentrated Solar Energy (CSP) will generate 37,000MWhe/year and that will also be used for water desalination, waste treatment 14,000MWhe/year and geothermal energy 500,000 MWhth7year (gas).

The energies generated by the photovoltaic panels, by waste composting and by thermoelectric concentration will be used in transportation, refrigeration and dehumidification and in general distribution. They propose that the excess energy generated by these systems be returned to the national energy grid.

The reasonable use of water is also present at Masdar, where the recycling of gray and black water, rainwater and dewwater harvesting, seawater greenhouses and landscaping consistent with the local climate are proposed. Water demand in the United Arab Emirates is 340 l/person/day and it is expected to reduce to 80 l/person/day and recycle all water. This reduction in consumption will be done through the use of smart devices with low water consumption in both offices and homes as well as in residences.

Waste treatment at Masdar will occur in three ways: recycling (50%), composite (17%) and non-recyclable (33%) which will serve as “fuel for an incineration plant” underground. Biodegradable waste will be composted and used as fertilizer, materials such as steel, metals and concrete will be recycled and wood can be reused or used as fuel. A 30% reduction in waste generation is proposed, but the initial amount assumed is 352 Tn/day, that is, 128,840 Tn/year.

To manage the emission of greenhouse gases there will be the CO2 Management Unit (CMU) associated with the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the United Nations, it will also develop projects for measurements and capture of CO2. An attempt is made to reduce emissions with the following strategies:

- Building design.

- Energy generation from renewable resources.

- Waste treatment.

- Transportation System.

- Carbon Capture Storage (CCS).

Like many universities in the Middle East, the neighborhood will be divided by gender. Women and families live at one end, while single men live at the other. Each end will have a small public square that will serve as a social center.

Authors and developers of the project

Masdar City was designed by the British architectural firm Foster and Partners. The environmental engineering and consulting was carried out by the Mott MDonald Group. Started in 2006, the project plans to cover 6 square kilometers and accommodate between 45,000 and 50,000 people, in addition to 1,500 companies and 60,000 workers who would go to the city every day. An initial budget of 22 billion dollars is expected and it is estimated that it will take 8 years to be built.

• - Construction of the project began in 2008 with the majority of the capital coming from Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (ADFEC), a subsidiary of the Mudadala Development Company, which is owned by the Government of Abu Dhabi and a corporate investment entity deployed by the Government to launch or initiate new projects in order to diversify Abu Dhabi's economy and create a strong non-oil sector.

• - With the impact of the global financial crisis, the project that was originally intended to be completed in 2016, the date was extended to between 2020 and 2025. The estimated cost of the city has also been reduced by 10 to 15 percent, putting the development between 18.7 and 19.8 billion dollars.

• - The first phase of the city, the initial 1,000,000 squares, now has a completion date of 2015, already has the first NIEBLA faculty building and the first residential building completed, but the Masdar headquarters building, designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture and the metro system are still in the planning phase, plus a pilot plan has already begun. The construction of this Phase 1 of the project is managed by the company CH2M HILL, an American engineering company.

• - The project has as partners through its Clean Technology Fund the multinational financial services companies Consensus Business Group, Credit Suisse Group and Siemens Venture Capital. In addition, it has the support of the international non-governmental organization WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), the entrepreneurial charity group BioRegional, which seeks to invent and offer practical sustainability solutions, and the non-governmental environmental organization Greenpeace, which, however, emphasizes that they should focus more on adapting existing cities to make them more sustainable instead of building new cities.

• - The United States Government has also supported the project. A collaboration agreement was signed between the United States Department of Energy and Masdar Group for the two organizations to share their knowledge to support plans for zero-carbon cities.

• - The construction of the infrastructure for the city is carried out by the Al Jaber Group, an Arab group that focuses on the construction sector. The “Wayfinding” system, which covers the ways of orientation and navigation of people in physical space, was developed by the companies EndPoint and City ID.

• - The German company Transsolar, a specialist in Bioclimatic Engineering, is responsible for the bioclimatic design of the Masdar Master Plan. In collaboration with the company WSP, they were in charge of developing new technologies, infrastructure and the city's sustainable plan. Their objective is for Masdar City to be distinguished by its cutting-edge operation. To achieve their goal, they generated a plan divided into phases, each phase can be modified and improved as the project progresses.

• - Regarding the transportation engineering used for Masdar, the Systematica company stands out for its planning at an urban level and on a smaller scale. Their approach was to focus the design on a global plan and, as the connection and route systems work, ensure that they adapt to mobility at lower levels until reaching an analysis of pedestrian flows.

• - The ARUP company, an independent firm made up of designers, consulting engineers and specialists from different areas, also participated in the development of Masdar.

• - She was in charge of the fire control strategy, the planning of nine car parks in the Masterplan, always taking into account energy generation and carbon emissions, and the promotion of a workshop on sustainability, of an educational and training nature, aimed at city employees, among other advisory actions.