Proposal: Wind Turbines in the City · 24. August 2012
With a bold hotel project, a recently graduated engineer challenges the normal practice of placing wind turbines as far away as possible from residential areas. Wind turbines will instead be right in cities and integrated into the architecture.
Although her proposal goes against the flow, according to Zane Biseniece, 25 from Latvia, it’s only an advantage that people are concerned about the problems of wind turbines in terms of noise and nuisance:
- It provides a good basis for development and turning disadvantages to advantages. Denmark has very good wind conditions, and it would be a shame not to use them to produce wind energy, because there is enormous potential. You can have wind turbines in urban areas while ensuring good living conditions for residents. My goal with this project is to show that wind turbines are not an annoyance. They can be used very effectively as a design element, she says.
Proposed airport hotel
In the project that earned Zane Biseniece a top grade of twelve in her master's degree final exam, she has placed a modern hotel with built-in wind turbines close to Aalborg Airport. The location was selected because of the good wind conditions at the Limfjord, and it is in line with Aalborg Municipality’s development plans for the area as a future engine of growth.
- The use of wind energy can be incorporated in building for all sorts of purposes. This project shows that it is feasible to integrate wind turbines in urban areas, while taking noise and architectural wishes into account. In my design, I have paid particular attention to highlighting the wind turbines and the space around them. Wind turbines can be designed according to buildings and architecture. Instead of placing wind turbines on top of buildings or as an appendage on the side, they can be incorporated in the design of the building and create new and different impressions, explains the young design engineer.
Special turbines
For the project, Zane Biseniece chose to use the Darrieus-type turbine that is particularly suitable for use in urban areas because of its minimal noise and vibration:
- All design considerations have revolved around making wind turbines an integral part of the building, so the turbines are a part of the facade. Aerodynamics and turbine characteristics affect the architecture – and vice versa. Darrieus-type turbines lose effectiveness if two turbine blades are hit by the wind in the same manner. Therefore, I have given this hotel a triangular shape which can accelerate the wind along the western and southern facades. These facades have a hollowed-out space that the turbines are placed in. This makes the turbines part of the facade, while only one of the turbine blades is hit by the wind, she explains.
Further information:
The Latvian engineer Zane Biseniece (mobile +45 5242 1179) began her studies in Riga, and came to Denmark as a student under the Erasmus program. After studies at VIA University College in Horsens, Zane Biseniece decided to continue in Architecture and Design at Aalborg University because of AAU's project-based teaching and the program’s specific combination of architecture and technical knowledge. She is now fully engaged in learning Danish and looking for a job with a focus on architecture.
