Algae Power? The First Algae Powered Building

The Bio Intelligent Quotient (BIQ) House is a 15-unit apartment building located in the German city of Hamburg. It has 129 algae filled louvered tanks which hang over the exterior of the south-east and south-west sides of the building. These tanks of algae power the entire building.

Designed by Arup, SSC Strategic Science Consultants and Splitterwerk Architects, the building uses algae as a way to heat and cool the building. The algae was harvested from the nearby Elbe River, and put into thin clear tanks. Each tank is them attached to the outside of the building in such a way that allows the tanks to be turned towards the sun, similar to solar panels. Inside the cases, the algae live in a water solution and are fed nutrients and carbon dioxide through an automated system.

To see more images and read the full article, click here: “First algae powered building goes up in Hamburg” by Bob Yirka for Phys.Org