The American Institute of Architects has announced four grant recipients of its Upjohn Research Initiative. Now in its 12th year, the annual program awards between $15,000 and $30,000 to up to six projects completed within an 18-month period. The jury, comprising members form the AIA College of Fellows and Board Knowledge Committee, was chaired by Illya Azaroff, AIA, founding principal of +LAB Architect, and included Daniel Hart, FAIA, principal and director of higher education at Parkhill Smith & Cooper; Peter Kuttner, FAIA, principal, CambridgeSeven; Paul Mankins, FAIA, principal, Substance Architecture; Barbara Sestak, FAIA, architecture professor, Portland State University; Jessica Sheridan, AIA, principal, Mancini Duffy; and Jennifer Workman, AIA, associate, GFF Architects.
The following project summaries of the four grantees are published on AIA’s Upjohn Research Initiative website.
Project: Retooling Bamboo Tectonics: From Vernacular Aesthetics to Milled Material System
Principal Investigators: Jonas Hauptman, Katie MacDonald, Assoc. AIA, and Kyle Schumann
Institution: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Description from AIA: This research project centers on an affordable, intelligent, digitally enhanced fabrication system for the evaluation, milling, and joining of structural bamboo at an architectural scale. The project will demonstrate how robotic fabrication can contribute to innovation in sustainable construction with novel, democratized joint machining technology that harnesses real-time data and feedback systems and parametric part selection to enhance the feasibility of widespread use of structural bamboo. The researchers will produce a cohesive system of firmware, software, hardware, and user interface that is inexpensive and field deployable. The end result will be a structural bamboo construction fabricated with the generative system.
Project: Nexus Between Sustainable Buildings and Human Health: Quantifying EEG Responses to Virtual Environments to Inform Design
Principal Investigators: Ming Hu and Madlen Simon, AIA
Institution: University of Maryland
Collaborators: Justin Benjamin, Assoc. AIA, Perkins+Will; Tim Bakos, AIA, Perkins+Will; and Edward Bernat, University of Maryland
Description from AIA: The goal of this research project is to develop, test, and validate a data-driven approach using virtual reality (VR) and electroencephalogram (EEG) technology for understanding the potential physiological influences of sustainable design features. In collaboration with an architecture firm and a neuroscience laboratory, the researchers propose technology-enabled, repeatable measures for quantifying how sustainable building features affect occupants’ health and well-being.
Project: Polycasting: Multi-Material 3D Printed Formwork for Reinforced Concrete
Principal Investigators: Shelby Doyle, AIA, and Nicholas Senske
Institution: Iowa State University
Description from AIA: This research explores dual-extrusion 3D printed formworks for casting concrete, simultaneously printing a combination of water-soluble PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) containment as well as printing integrated reinforcement. The focus of this project is to design, construct, and test prototypes for a new generation of non-standard concrete formworks that are structurally efficient, reduce material and labor costs, and expand the expressive design potential of concrete.
Project: Development of Artificial Leaf-Based Façade Cladding (ALFC) Systems for Energy Production and Carbon Sequestration
Principal Investigators: Rahman Azari and Mohammad Asadi
Institution: Illinois Institute of Technology
Collaborator: Farid Pour, HOK
This research project aims to develop and test an artificial leaf-based façade cladding (ALFC) prototype that produces clean energy for operation of buildings and removes carbon dioxide of the air through chemical processes. This study proposes that successful integration of artificial leaf technology can convert urban envelopes into large-scale sponge systems with massive carbon removal and sustainable energy production capabilities. A combination of field measurements and simulation techniques will be used to achieve the objectives of this study.
