The project involves the design of an ultra-low-energysolar-optimized single family residence. The first two years of the project willinvolve the investigation and analysis of design concepts and the completion of the conceptualdesign of a residence suitable for single-family housing.

Duration: max 3 years.

One group of students will focus upon thearchitectural aspects of the house design in order to minimize thermal energy requirements as well ascontrolling the temporal distribution of heatingand cooling demands.

Another group of students will focus on minimizingelectrical energy requirements and examiningstrategies to control peak electrical demands and load fluctuations.

A third group of students will focus on exploring thethermodynamics of energy conversion devices that might be used for servicingthe building’s space heating, space cooling,domestic hot water, and electrical needs.

The project will also include site visits to locallow-energy, off-grid, and conventional architecture houses to expose the students to an arrayof architectural designs, energy conversiondevices, and design challenges.