2007 Solar Decathlon College Competition
Six Schools Aim for 'Zero' Using Cabot Nanogel Aerogel
www.solardecathlon.org
Sponsored by the United States Department of Energy, the "Solar Decathlon" is an international competition in which college students are charged with building the most attractive, energy-efficient and livable solar houses. Each house will be judged in ten categories related to engineering and architectural excellence, marketability and energy-efficiency.
Participants in the competition design, build and develop homes that are completely solar-powered and incorporate building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). The Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Solar 7 house (pictured above) uses Nanogel translucent aerogel on its south-facing “tromme” wall, which consists of two large aerogel-filled polycarbonate panels sandwiched around a layer of water. Five other solar home designs incorporate Cabot's aerogel material, including buildings designed by student teams from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Kansas State University and University of Kansas, Pennsylvania State University, and the University of Colorado.
"The manner in which MIT is using Nanogel aerogel is a new application for us," said Jim Satterwhite, Global Sales Manager at Cabot. "We're interested in seeing the energy data from this 'aerogel-lined warm wall,' as well as data from the other homes designed by the Solar Decathlon teams. This competition is all about new ideas and innovations that could result in energy-saving breakthroughs."
The Solar Decathlon was held on the National Mall in Washington D.C., and held an open house for the public from October 12 to 22, 2007. A total of 19 colleges competed in this year’s event.
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