Floating 'Slinky' Hotel Can Survive Rising Seas

by A.K. Streeter

from http://www.treehugger.com/

Rendering courtesy of Remistudio.

Remember Biosphere 2? Well, fast forward to the Ark, designer Alexander Remizov's floating (or not) eco-friendly, energy-generating bubble hotel.
Remizov came up with the Ark's plans as part of a program on architecture and disaster relief through the International Union of Architects (UIA). According to the Remizov's Remistudio web site, the Ark is designed as: "an integrated energy system with an uninterruptible power supply using alternative energy sources." And instead of glass and steel, the Ark is made of durable 'self-cleaning' and reportedly recyclable plastic panels.


The Ark mimics Biosphere in its attempt to create a self-sustaining, oxygen-generating building. Rendering courtesy of Remistudio.

According to this Spiegel International article, the Ark would be built around a central, lightweight pillar connecting both to roof-top wind generators and heat pumps, as well as to energy storage and thermal conversion units in the basement. Remizov also plans to have a 'tornado' energy generating spiral at the top of the central pillar.


Rendering courtesy of Remistudio.

The dome-shaped Ark, constructed of wooden arches falling out from the spire, steel cables, and transparent Ethyl TetraFluoroEthylene (ETFE) plastic (instead of glass) is made to be able to withstand earthquakes and stay afloat in the event of floods or rising seas. Remizov said on the web site that the ETFE foil shell of the building would also serve as a solar hot water collector as well as gutters to trap rainwater for us.


Rendering courtesy of Remistudio.

Remizov collaborated with a German design and engineering firm and the Moscow-based scientist Lev Britvin, who, according to Remizov, has developed energy-saving solutions for space stations. The company is now searching, according to Spiegel, for investors to make the design a reality.
Remizov also told Spiegel that prefabricated sections of the hotel would make construction possible in three to four months nearly anywhere in the world. Perhaps his design firm needs to take a page from the Chinese construction company that erected this hotel in 6 days.
The Ark would contain 150,000 square feet of living space.

The Floating Aerohotel: A Modern Aquatecture Marvel

by Mike Chino

As fears of global warming induced population displacement are steadily realized, the allure of waterborne aquatecture becomes more and more enticing. Designed by Alexander Asadov, this incredible floating Aerohotel features a lighter-than-air aesthetic that sits serenely atop an elegant system of supports. Conceived as an elevated aquatic structure replete with hanging gardens, the space-age floating island preserves the entire extent of the ecosystem beneath it, contrasting with man-made islands that disrupt their immediate environment with tons of gravel fill.

Asadov’s Aerohotel consists of a 200 meter wide circular hub lofted by an interlacing network of supports anchored by three arms that stretch to the bottom of its site. The structure’s body will contain cafés, restaurants, and winter gardens in addition to a hotel. The Aerohotel can be installed in any body of water, and the plans include docking arrangements for boats as well as a landing strip for a zeppelin - how slick is that?

Asadov Architectural Studio states that one of the benefits of the floating island is that it has “significantly less costs for construction against the gravel works. At this almost all the basin area under the construction is still untouched, thus improving the project’s ecological value.” If the current tides of global warming aren’t stemmed, we’ll certainly be looking towards more floating architectural solutions such as this.

+ A.Asadov Architectural Studio

Via World Architecture News