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Masdar: The Zero Carbon, Zero Waste City of the Future
Written by merlynne6 
Masdar City / aerial view
Photo: bigvig / militaryphotos.net
An extraordinary ecological city of the future is being built in the United Arab Emirates, outside of the capital Abu Dhabi. The work force will soon reach 40,000. Situated in the desert, Masdar is a small city that will be 6 square kilometers (2.3 m2). It is designed to house 40,000 people, 1500 businesses and accommodate up to 50,000 commuters. The blazing sun, the ultimate clean power source will power the city. Masdar's solar farm, which is the largest in the Middle East, is already built. No skyscrapers or cars will be allowed and the streets are designed for pedestrians. Boundary walls prevent urban sprawl and on the narrow streets, buildings are so closely aligned that they shade each other.
Helicopter View of Masdar City
Photo: bigvig / militaryphotos.net
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Recycled rebar is used for the 'concrete' foundations of Masdar's buildings.
Photo: chosun.blog
A 40 to 60 watt solar power plant built by the German firm Conergy supplies power for construction work. A larger solar power plant will follow and, together with photovoltaic modules on rooftops, 130 megawatts of solar power is expected to be generated. A solar powered desalination plant will generate the city's fresh water ~80% of the water will be recycled. Water usage in Madar will be one half that typical of comparably sized small cities. Wind farms will be built on Masdar's outskirts with a designed power output of 20 megawatts. The world's largest hydrogen power plant is planned and there are geothermal sources to be exploited.
Masdar Headquarters in Masdar City
Photo: chosun blog
Exceptional energy efficiency and reduction in energy footprint at Masdar will be achieved through the integration of several important, almost zero footprint, alternative energy technologies. High fences installed around the city will reduce the impact of hot blowing winds from the desert. Building units use solar glass whose composition is new materials that further reduce the heat burden. Building complexes have high efficiency cooling towers. Fountains and trees will be grown as an additional cooling device. Huge umbrellas unfold during the day and close up at night as shown in these photos. Architects and engineers are projecting that Masdar's average temperature will be 20 degrees lower than the surrounding desert.
Waste can be reduced to near zero. Biological waste will be used to create a nutrient rich soil (and fertilizer), and some could be burned via waste incineration for power. Industrial wastes such as plastics will be recycled and/or reduced and reused.
Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) Network - Masdar City
The network under construction in Masdar City is designed by Luca Guala of Systematica, vehicle design is by Zagato, and pod cars are manufactured by 2getthere. Driver-less pod cars are powered by solar generated electricity. Lithium phosphate batteries allow for a 60km journey after a 1.5 hr charge. Four to six people can be carried at a maximum speed of 40km/hr. The pod cars are voice activated and guided, tell your pod where to go and presto ..
Photo: royalandco
Masdar's first PRT will serve the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology and a smaller additional area. The MIST fleet will consist of 10 passenger and 3 freight pod cars that run on a 1.2km network with 2 passenger and 3 freight stations.
Elevated Personal Rapid Transit at Masdar City
Photo: chosun.blog
Final deployment of the PRT will utilize 3,000 pod cars that make 130,000 trips per day on a passenger network that has 85 stations. A trip around Masdar City will take about 10 minutes.
The Freight Rapid Transit System (FRT) will run on a dedicated guide way in the undercroft, an artificial basement that can be created by raising the pedestrian level. The FRT system will make 5,000 trips/day using vehicles with two pallets and maximum payload of 1600 kg.
Electric Pod Cars in Masdar
Photo: Domenick Yonney / autobloggreen
PRT design at this stage has a range of 60km, which allows for 30-40 hours of continuous service before the battery degrades to 20% of full charge. Electric pod cars are now in service at the Port of Rotterdam where they travel on the surface, are not restricted to corridors and a grid of magnets defines the virtual route. Masdar's PRT uses rows of magnets and there is one magnet every 4 meters (cost ~$5M including fitting) to define the travel path for the pod cars. Highways and a railroad will connect to Abu Dhabi and other cities in the UAE. With no fossil fuel burning vehicles allowed, air quality in Masdar City should be exceptional.
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Masdar Plaza daytime / umbrellas open
Photo: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA)- Germany / Austria
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Masdar Plaza night / umbrellas closed
Photo: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA)- Germany / Austria
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Masdar Institute of Science and Techology / interior view
Photo: royalandco
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MIST library concept / German architects
Photo: Terrell Group, France
The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (MIST), will be closely affiliated with the famous Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the USA. Technologies to be evaluated include a circular array of mirrors on the ground that focus light on a tower in the city center. This tower will redirect a one meter beam of light downward to a system that collects heat that will drive power generators. A 45 meter tall, wind tower may be built to draw breezes through the streets without using any energy input. Masdar is designed to be energy neutral. Electricity will only be used for a desalination plant, some air conditioning and numerous small business and personal gadgets.
Masdar Buildings 
Photo: bigvig / militaryphotos.net
The Masdar Project is supported by the global conservation charity, World Wide Fund for Nature; and the sustainability group BioRegional. Masdar is designed by British architects Foster and Partners. It is largely funded by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi’s ruler. Cost will be £10-20bn ($15-30bn). Finished by 2015 - 2020, Masdar intends to be an international center for the research and development of cutting edge sustainable technologies, and near zero impact cities of the future. Even if Masdar becomes home to only a very wealthy elite, it will be an invaluable test bed for low environmental impact urbanism.
Building and Energy Systems Designs -
Masdar Headquarters in Abu Dhabi - concept
Photo: chosun blog
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Masdar Buildings
Photo: bigvig / militaryphotos.net
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Masdar Hotel interior
Photo: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA)- Germany / Austria
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Masdar Hotel exterior
Photo: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA)- Germany / Austria
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Masdar Hotel Plan - Usage and Umbrellas
Photo: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA)- Germany / Austria
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Small (and large) cities such as Masdar are desperately needed by this highly stressed planet we live on and call 'Earth'. The design imperative of Masdar City to achieve zero waste and zero energy footprints brings with it extraordinary benefits. It is not important that these goals be achieved in the absolute. A paradigm shift is underway in the design and use of urban habitat. Gaia must be very pleased!
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Copyright(c) Blumenberg Associates LLC, 2010. The article may be posted and copied elsewhere on blogs and in not-for-profit contexts with the requirement that this copyright notice is clearly visible. For use in for-profit business, please contact the author.
© merlynne6
