Browsing by Author "Kirscht, Nicholas"

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Inspired Conservation
(North Dakota State University, 2012) Kirscht, Nicholas
This thesis aims to achieve higher levels of building performance by instilling a consciousness toward energy conservation in inhabitants of a built construct. A variety of methods for harnessing, storing, and using energy are available today; however, because conventional energy is non-renewable and harmful to the environment, architects must continually explore renewable energy and integrate appropriate passive/active strategies in early stages of design to lessen the dependency and use of these resources. In response, this proposal for a mixed-use building will become an expression of energy conservation while serving as an extension of St. Paul’s transportation and energy infrastructure, and preserving the city’s historical significance.
Water Analysis
(2011) Kirscht, Nicholas
Students in this studio were asked to use 3D modeling tools to compose an abstract digital representation concerning a fact, statistic, or characteristic of water. The average human body is composed of just over 50% water and varies depending on age, gender, and body type. Physical activity and body water concentration are directly related. Those who remain inactive can have a body water content of 45% or less, while those who are physically active can have a water content of up to 70% or more. Regular water intake and exercise is essential to a person’s physical and mental well-being. Below, dance becomes an expression of how unique water is and what forms it is able to take. The arabesque tends to be very rigid and structured. Whereas the arabesque with attitude will tend to have more flow and uniqueness depending on the performer. Lastly the grand jete can suggest airiness and lightness in a dance performance.
Water Research Station
(2011) Kirscht, Nicholas
Students in this studio were asked to design a Water Resource Experiment Station at a site on the bank of the Missouri River west of Linton and South of Bismarck, North Dakota. The students were given presentations by studio collaborators from the Biology Department and the Department of Civil Engineering concerning the use of constructed wetlands to clean waste water from the laboratory and rain water harvesting from the building’s exterior to add fresh water to the clean waste water for the use of the laboratory. Each design is approximately 20,000 square feet in area, has public parking and public toilets accessible from the exterior and is intended to be open to the public for their use after hours and on the weekends. This building design focuses primarily on strategies which can diffuse, block, or harness sun light for both passive and active systems by adapting the form and envelope of the building to meet the specific demands of its function. Soil retention, water runoff, constructability, solar gain, views, and constructed wetland placement are all driving forces which led to the particular site selection. Once constructed, a building should have as little negative impacts on the environment as possible. In response, all water runoff from the building’s gutter system is deposited directly into the adjacent 3rd pond of the constructed wetland. There is no need for excessive pumps and plumbing to get the water to its destination. This is only achieved by careful consideration of building footprint, roof slopes, and pond placement. Offices, conference rooms, and laboratories are spaces where maximum accuracy and productivity is required, thus are most susceptible to glare or visual discomfort. Since the site is in the Northern Hemisphere, this issue is solved programmatically by orienting some of these spaces to the North for evenly diffused daylight. Where only heat gain is desired, a massive trombe wall, which also serves as a thermal mass to distribute heat at night, is used to heat spaces while blocking sunlight entirely. For spaces which offer choice of the amount of natural day lighting and heat gain, exterior shading louvers are used to control visual comfort and the performance of the building. The form of the building is derived by solar angles at certain times of the year. The structure, which holds this form in place, informs the spaces inside and contains the ducts and plumbing in a linear line with few turns so fluid and air can move more efficiently. The form, structure, and mechanical ducts/pipes were designed simultaneously, which is a typical mark of high performance buildings. ENVELOPE: 5mm AMC (Aluminum Metal Composite) Dry Joint Panel System, Total 350mm Rigid Insulation, Triple Pane Insulated Glazing STRUCTURE: Steel Wide Flange Superstructure, Wide Flange Secondary, Composite Floor Decking, Corrugated Aluminum PASSIVE SYSTEMS: Massive Stone Trombe Wall / Thermal Mass, 250mm Aluminum Louvers ACTIVE SYSTEMS: Integrated Solar Heat Collectors, Glycol System w/ Direct Exchange to Air Supply, North End Air-Intake, Rooftop Exhaust