On the television show Open Talk broadcast on September 13 in China Central Television І, a solar house prototype with novel design caught the audiences’ attention. It was called the R-CELLS residence designed by Team Tianjin U+ as an competing entry for the final competition of the Solar Decathlon China 2021 (SDC). A real house of the design with an area of 150 square meters has been built in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province and successfully passed the acceptance check by the SDC Committee on September 14.
As the prototype of solar housing, R-CELLS represented the idea of "the lifelong healthy and ecological residence", responding the three challenges of “sustainable development, smart connection, and human health” put forward by SDC 2021.
On Open Talk show
It uses solar energy as the main source of electrical energy and adopts an asymmetric V-shaped roof with reversed eaves facing the sunlight, so as to maximize the utilization of passive solar gain in winter, and to provide sufficient spaces for photovoltaic panels. The solar energy absorbed can be converted into electric energy and heat energy through internal equipment.
R-CELLS house built in Zhangjiakou （Photos by Huang Weimin）
“At a conservative estimate, such a house can generate more than 40,000 KWH of electricity a year, which is about 4-5 times the electricity it needs!” said one of its designers, Wang Qi, an graduate majoring in Architecture at Tianjin University on the Open Talk show, adding that the excess electrical energy can be transmitted to the grid, achieving zero energy consumption in the building and being a "producer and seller" of electrical energy transactions.
R-Cells is committed to creating an accessible environment for people of all ages. It considers accessibility from the exterior platform to the interior spaces. The major living and service spaces are designed with the spatial scale of wheelchair mobility in mind, such as the kitchen, the bathroom, etc.
“After stepping into the house surrounded by and filled with plants after a busy day of work, you set the mode of light and air conditioning with one button through your phone, making the temperature comfortable and the brightness moderate. The child sleeps soundly in the house and you don’t have to worry about the mobility of the elderly because of safety handrails and alarms it is fully equipped... Such beautiful scenes can be perfectly realized in the R-CELLS residence,” Wang Qi remarked.
Initiated by the United States Department of Energy, Solar Decathlon (SD) is an international collegiate competition, comprising ten contests, which challenges university teams to design, build, and operate highly efficient and innovative houses powered by renewable energy. The SD has currently expanded globally in the United States, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America & the Caribbean.
SDC 2021 has invited universities from all over the world to cooperate with enterprises to design a green solar house that meets the requirements of “sustainable development, intelligent interconnection, and human health”. All groups will have their designs implemented in Zhangjiakou City in a bid to support 2022 Beijing-Zhangjiakou Winter Olympic Games and the construction of national renewable energy demonstration zone.
Team Tianjin U+, led by Tianjin University’s School of Architecture, pools the strength of many research institutions and enterprises including Tianjin University Research Institute of Architectural Design and Urban Planning Co., Ltd, Tianjin Chengjian University and Oslo School of Architecture and Design. It comprises more than 20 consultants and tutors and over 50 participants ranging from doctoral students, graduates to undergraduates.
By Eva Yin
