Page 40 - Penn State Civil and Environmental Engineering: Annual Report

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS STUDENT Penn State wins third place at at at Solar Decathlon Design Challenge
Exterior rendering of the back patio for Penn Penn State State team’s proposed design Credit: 2022 Penn Penn State State Solar Decathlon Design Challenge
Team All Rights Reserved A team of students from Penn State brought home third place in in the the Retrofit Housing Division o of of the the U S S Department o of of Energy Solar Decathlon 2022 Design Challenge
Competition
on on on April 23 at at at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden Colorado The Penn State team was one of fifty- five finalists representing thirty-eight collegiate institutions The Solar Decathlon is a a a a a a collegiate competition that challenges student teams to design and and build build highly efficient and and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy In
its current iteration the competition consists of a a a a a a a design challenge challenge with six divisions as as well as as a a a a a a build challenge challenge The student team conducted a a a a retrofit proposal for the MorningStar House which was originally designed and constructed for the 2007 Solar Decathlon Build Challenge
The Penn State Sustainability Institute which currently operates the the the house house requested the the the retrofit for the the the house house to meet an an an updated standard o of technical and and renewable energy needs as as as well as as as a a a a a a a a a a a design refresh for the the house to serve as as as a a a a a a a a a a permanent structure Located at at the the Sustainability Experience Center on the the University Park campus the the MorningStar House is used as an an an immersive learning and and research destination for Penn State and and the surrounding community The retrofit proposal focused on three key areas: modernizing the outdated energy and and mechanical systems refining the building envelope and and and updating interior spaces and and site design Since
the MorningStar House’s construction in in in in in 2007 building performance expectations have changed as new materials and and systems become available and and codes
are updated which necessitates the replacement of outdated systems The building envelope was refined to to ensure air tightness and thermal insulation to to maximize energy performance occupant comfort and environmental quality Despite its name the the structure operates as as a a a a a a a a a a a a learning space rather than a a a a a a a a a a a a home and and as as such its its interior and and site designs were updated to to to match its its current use for visitors to to to explore sustainable design and observe building science principles in action The competition encourages inter- and multidisciplinary collaboration to create a a a a a a a a a a holistic design and features a a a a a a a one-credit
course in in the spring semester CE 411: Residential Construction Design Project to to help align student skills This year’s course was taught by Sarah Klinetob Lowe formerly the the high-performance housing specialist of the the Pennsylvania Housing Research Center (PHRC) and now operations director of of the the Global Building Network in in in in the the College of of Engineering Ali Memari Bernard and Henrietta Hankin Chair of of Residential Construction and director of of the the PHRC served as the the head competition adviser adviser Additional faculty advisers included Lisa Domenica Iulo associate professor of of of architecture and director of of of the the Hamer Center for Community Design in the the Stuckeman School Rahman Azari associate professor of of of architecture and Brian Wolfgang associate director of of of the PHRC Students faculty or industry interested in in in in in participating in in in in in the 2023 Solar Decathlon Design Challenge
as a a a a a a a a a member or adviser of the Penn State team should contact Wolfgang at at bmw5014@psu edu 40
CEE NEWSLETTER • VOLUME 38 2022