User:AbdulGeotech/KAUST Sustainable Campus

Outdoor corridor by the Red Sea at KAUST campus.

KAUST sustainable campus is a distinctly perceptible 5,337,296 sq ft site along the Red Sea. This campus is considered the the world's largest LEED platinum project as per the AIA at the time 2009. KAUST stands for King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, a graduate-level research university in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. The project received 52 points of the LEED BD+C: New Construction rating system. The campus meets and exceeds the LEED BD+C requirements in water efficiency, energy & atmosphere, material & resources, sustainable sites, and indoor environmental quality. This sustainable campus provide a comfortable environment and increases the users productivity.

Water Efficiency

Saudi Arabia is an arid country with no secured natural water resource such as rivers or lakes. The main water source is sea water which passes through costly desalination process and distributed all over the country using large pipelines network. Given the value of the water in the desert country, an irrigation plan was developed for KAUST campus to reduce the amount of water required for irrigation purposes. The gray and condensate water were used in the irrigation in addition to the potable water that have been used efficiently using a drip irrigation system with time and moisture sensors. The campus reuse 100% of its wastewater. Moreover, the campus design adopted multiple strategies to reduce the water demand of the campus buildings. These adopted strategies such as Low-flow sink and lavatory faucets with electronic sensors led to a reduction of the water demand by 40%.

As per KAUST, it reduces the required irrigation water by 50% since 2015 using an xeriscaping design concepts. This concept, along with landscaping optimization and the irrigation plan, has led to this reduction. The landscape was optimized by planting a collection of 144 plants, 70% of which are drought-tolerant to withstand the desert weather.

Energy

KAUST campus is an example of an efficient low energy building in the region. More than 7% of the total energy requirement is generated on-site using large solar PV and solar thermal arrays on the site and campus roof surfaces. The solar thermal arrays are for heating domestic water for lab buildings. KAUST's overall energy savings is 27.1% better than ASHRAE 90.1-2004 standards which is a great achievement specially that the campus have labs that need high level of energy. Moreover, buildings on the campus use smart lighting controls and the design employed daylight to reduce the energy demand. Given the fact of the climate change and the impact of the fossil fuel, KAUST installed a large wind farm to ensure energy supply that meet the campus demand specially that the fossil fuel is not permanent.

As per KAUST, the campus adopted greener modes of transportation within the campus to ensure an efficient use of energy and reduce carbon emissions. The campus is cycling friendly, and parking spaces are available near any building entrance. Also, the security patrolling is conducted using Ecospin raptor and bicycles. The KAUST Facilities Management’s fleet consists of 17 electric vehicles which are used for different tasks such as maintenance, horticulture, and waste collection.

Material

Windows were shaded by decorative wooden boards which reduces the heat load. The concept is adopted from the old Arab windows shading system.

KAUST was committed to building a campus that has environmentally responsive buildings and uses sustainable construction material. Given the scale of the project, a new market of sustainable construction material was created by KAUST. Almost one fifth of the construction material contains recycled content. Few local products met LEED requirements, therefore, KAUST trained local manufactures to produce such materials. 38% of the contraction material comes within 500 miles which is an exponential achievement that help reducing the greenhouse gas emission caused by the transport of the construction material. All indoor material is low volatile organic compounds (VOC) and 83% of the construction waste has been recycled or donated for further use. As per HOK, the architect and the construction contractor, the selection of the materials is based on their ability to withstand the hot, humid, marine climate. Such selection of material will enhance the material integrity of the project elements and decrease the need for any change/replace. The campus is designed designed as a 100-year building where durable materials were used in the construction and the project site was raised by 6m to avoid the danger of any increasing in the sea level in the future. These design considerations would reduce the emission footprint of manufacturing new material and ensure the material integrity.

Atmosphere

Skylight inside the library.

Covered pedestrian spine for comfortable walking experience within the continuous building concept.

User experience in KAUST campus is magnificent because of the continuous building concept. The pedestrian spine connects research buildings, housing, offices, and retail area & food court. Solar towers exist along the pedestrian spine to create natural ventilation provide sufficing daylight for the pedestrian which reduce the energy demand. Also, water fountain and vegetated area clean the air and provide Oxygen. The indoor environment is comfortable because of the under-floor air distribution system which increases the efficiency of the MPE design and removes harmful pollutants effectively. Efficient lighting system was installed in the campus such as dimming ballasts, occupancy sensors and time clocks to ensure comfort and reduce the energy use. HOK, the architect and the construction contractor, said that the lighting design supported KAUST’S ambitious sustainability goals by achieving every LEED credit possible. This includes satisfying the LEED credit for reducing light pollution while still creating a spectacular nighttime environment.

The climate of Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, is a desert climate where the campus receives sever solar gain. The huge solar gain is not the only variable, the region on the Red Sea has high humidity levels, day and night. KAUST campus design considered reducing the impact of these sever climate condition by adopting different strategies. The skylight and window shading system reduces the heat load to preserve the daylight. This combination is adopted from an old shading system in Arab region where the windows were shaded by decorative wooden board which reduces the heat load, increase the privacy, and get the advantage of the daylight that create a great coupled of shade and shadow. Walkways are shaded as well and users can bike or walk comfortably. Also, light-color paving materials are used to reduce the impact of the reflection of the sun heat and solar gain capacity.

Site Assessment

Recently, site assessment credit get evolved in the LEED BD+C: New Construction rating system. KAUST campus is on the Red Sea shoreline which is a priceless marine environment in which reef flats and coral-rich inhabits the areas. Hence, this valuable environment should be preserved and protected during construction and operation of the campus. As one of the site assessment requirements is vegetation, during the design phase, KAUST decided to initiate a 50-meter buffer zone to protect the coral reefs and mangrove forests. Within this zone, no construction activates are allowed. Moreover, used water (gray and dark) are discharged to the on-site treatment plant to be used for irrigation purposes and not discharged to the sea. This is part of the work that has been accomplished in the predesign phase to build a highly environmentally friendly campus.

Awards

Daylight reflection on indoor water fountain within the continues buildings walkways.

As per the AEI (Affiliated Engineers, Inc), the Energy efficiency and HVAC consultant of the project, KAUST campus and buildings awarded multiplies awards as a recognition of its sustainable environment.

• 2013 SustainABILITY Leadership Award - Citation of Merit
• 2011 Laboratory of the Year Award
• 2011 Honor Awards, "Serve" Merit Award, KAUST Library
• 2010 Top Ten LEED Projects, Number 1 Ranking
• 2011 Design Awards - Architecture Over 50,000 sf, KAUST Library
• 2011 Architecture Award, KAUST Library
• 2010 International Architecture Award
• 2011 Sustainability Award, KAUST Library
• 2011 Library Building Award, KAUST Library
• 2011 Sustain Award Building of the Year, International Prize, KAUST Library
• 2011 Design Awards - Devine Detail, KAUST Library
• 2010 Green Good Design Architecture Award
• 2010 Top Ten Green Project
• 2010 International Sustainable Campus Award, Construction Category, KAUST Library
• 2010 Honor Award, Architecture Category, KAUST Library.