Eco-Friendly Water Cube Opens in Beijing
If you feel as if past Olympic aquatic parks haven’t exactly quenched your thirst, you should take a closer look at the Beijing National Aquatic Center. Four years in the making, the “Water Cube” resembles a large rectangle of beautifully blown bubbles. Its stunning design is matched with green features that prove to innovate architecture and building techniques.
The transparent plastic used in the buildings construction, Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene, reduces heat loss and absorbs solar radiation. So all those pretty blues will help shield those inside from the harmful rays of the sun. It’s also lightweight at 1% the weight of glass, yet extremely durable with form factors that allow it to bear up to four hundred times its own weight.
The Water Cube allows air to circulate through cushions scattered throughout the building. The air is regulated and excess heat is transfered to the water for the swimmers below. Air is further recycled both inside and outside the system. This keeps a tight lock on the level of humidity and water temperature inside the pools.
You’ll be seeing much more of this amazing eco-friendly design on TV during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. I just wish I had the time to go and experience it first hand.
