Editors’ Choice
2019 Skyscraper Competition
Dimo Ivanov
Switzerland
Inspiration
Inspired by professor Donald r. Sadoway’s notion of giant container-sized liquid metal battery, Ephemere high-rise proposes the idea of a floating power station and liquid metal battery charging station.
Liquid metal battery
The team of professor sadoway – ambri aims to develop a giant battery that fits in a 40-foot shipping container for placement in the field. And this has a nameplate capacity of two megawatt-hours. That’s enough energy to meet the daily electrical needs of 200 households. Ambri’s cells are strung together within a thermal enclosure to form an ambri core. The ambri core is ‘self-heating’ when operated every couple of days, requiring no external heating to keep the batteries at temperature. The ambri system comprises multiple ambri cores that are strung together and connected to the grid with power electronics. The configuration of the ambri system is modular and can be customized to meet specific customer needs.
Offshore wind, wave and tidal energy
Ephemere high-rise uses 100% renewable energy sources for electricity production. Harnessing energy from offshore winds, waves, and tides holds great promise for our world’s clean energy future. Energy production is just one of the valuable resources our oceans and coastal ecosystems provide. We can successfully develop offshore renewable energy by ensuring that energy projects are sited, designed, and constructed in a manner that protects our fragile ocean ecosystems.
All-in-one concept
Ephemere high-rise is a high tech structure that uses all available local renewable energy sources to generate electricity. However the electricity production is only one of many important functions: living space, education, resource management, energy storage, research and engineering.
Site
Depending on the location and on the local renewable energy sources.
Dimensions
Building length total: 1500m , building height: 430m above sea level + 70m below sea level, building width total:620m.
Areas
Research areas, living areas, university, docking area, control center, communication, social life, recreation areas.
Crew
2000 ‘ephemere’ residents Researchers, scientists, students, professors, dockers, engineers.
Energy sources
Offshore wind, wave, and tidal energy.
Energy storage
150’000 liquid metal batteries. 1 liquid metal battery – 2mwh.
