Case study II

Gardens by the Bay: High performance through design optimization and integration

Article:
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010), 140157, doi:10.3763/inbi.2010.0029 2010 Earthscan ISSN: 17508975 (print), 17566932 (online) www.earthscanjournals.com

Gardens by the Bay: High performance through design optimization and integration
Meredith Davey*1, Patrick Bellew 1, Kenneth Er2, Andy Kwek2, Johnny Lim3
1 Atelier

Ten Ltd, 19 Perseverance Works, 38 Kingsland Road, London EC2 8DD, UK Parks Board of Singapore, 1 Cluny Road, Singapore 259569 3 CPG Corporation Pte Ltd, 238B Thomson Road #18-00, Tower B Novena Square, Singapore 307685
2 National

This is a case study on the development of the Gardens by the Bay, Bay South and Conservatory Complex to provide intelligent and integrated building responses. This article demonstrates the effectiveness of combining a number of environmental design and building services optimization steps to achieve a sustainable design. Key initiatives undertaken include high-level daylighting design of the building skin to achieve exacting natural light requirements inside the spaces, while at the same time limiting thermal loads. Desiccant dehumidification systems are applied to minimize system cooling loads, so that waste heat from biomass combined heat and power (CHP) can drive substantive portions of the conditioning requirements. A waste stream made up of horticultural biomass is also identified and proposed to be utilized to provide the primary fuel for the biomass CHP system. In addition, this article provides a case study of how external structures are integrated to the building to provide ventilation and renewable energy harvesting.
Keywords: biomass CHP; carbon neutral; conservatory; daylighting; integration; liquid desiccant; masterplan; optimization
*Corresponding author. E-mail: meredith.davey@atelierten.com

Comment [HP1]: Systems

INTRODUCTION
This article presents a case study of the Gardens by the Bay, Bay South (GBBS) project in Singapore to illustrate how design optimization and crossdiscipline integration can result in a highperformance and responsive building. Bay South Gardens is comprised of 52 ha of landscaped gardens on reclaimed ground in Singapores new Downtown in Marina Bay (the estuary mouth of the Singapore River). The gardens feature a 20,000 m2 complex of cooled conservatories and 18 huge structures supporting vertical gardens ranging in height from 25 to 50 m, known as the supertrees. The project is currently under construction and is due to be completed in late 2011.

PROJECT BACKGROUND
The project was the subject of an international design competition organized by the National Parks Board of Singapore (NParks) in 2006, with a view to seeking an innovative and implementable
Gardens by the Bay 141
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

masterplan design for the gardens. The Bay South Gardens competition was won by a team led by Andrew Grant of Grant Associates and involved architects Wilkinson Eyre with engineering by Atelier One (structural) and Atelier Ten (environmental). The conservatories and the gardens have been designed to be symbiotic through the interaction of a number of energy and water processes that are interrelated. The conservatory complex is divided into two biomes: cool dry biome (CDB) and cool moist biome (CMB) that are connected through the hub building. The CDB will recreate the conditions in Mediterranean spring time, i.e., mild, dry days with cool nights. The CMB will emulate the conditions of tropical mountain regions, areas where the air temperature is relatively mild during the day and slightly chilly at night but with humidity levels that are approaching saturation throughout the day and night period. Singapore, being at a latitude of 1.37N, has a conventional equatorial tropical climate. Approximately 95 per cent of the hours in a typical meteorological year are between 24C and 32C with humidity ratios between 1721 g/kg. NParks identified at an early stage in the development cycle that to modify such humid and
FIGURE 1 Gardens by the Bay, Bay South Gardens masterplan Grant Associates Comment [HP2]: Program

Legend: Soft Areas Hard Areas Buildings Sheltered Nursery Area Canopies Water 1 Cool Dry Conservatory 2 Cool Moist Conservatory 3 The Hub 4 Energy Centre 5 Energy Store 6 Garden Offices 7 Support Biome

9 Substation 10 Lake 11 Filter Ponds 12 Marina Inlet 13 Lion Grove 14 Arrivals Area 15 F&B Outlets 16 Retail Outlets 17 Nature Island 18 Coach Park 19 Service Road 20 Events Stage 21 Events Lawn 22 Scented Walk 23 Curved Road 24 Water Taxi Landings 25 Boat ride landing 26 Pride of Singapore Plaza 8 Nursery Sheltered Area Supertrees Bridges Revetment Bus Stops Road Crossings & Garden Arrival squares Structure planting to site boundaries Existing trees to be retained (tbc) Buildings buried beneath earthwork

142 Davey et al.

Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

hot conditions to the desired temperature ranges would conventionally consume large amounts of energy. As such, the design brief called for the design team to develop atypical design solutions to minimize the energy consumption through the use of passive and system design optimization. In addition to these measures, a number of intelligent building control options have been incorporated that sit halfway between a building system and a passive design solution for the operation of the building. Integrating the design of the different elements of the wider project together has allowed a number of virtuous cycles to be developed involving the reuse of resources or the maximization of the efficiency of their use. The project also links to the NParks wider remit within Singapore and aims to turn a significant
FIGURE 2 Architectural renderings of the cool dry (left) and cool moist (right) biomes with the hub (centre) Wilkinson Eyre Architects FIGURE 3 Cool dry (front) and cool moist (back) biomes with supertrees in background Wilkinson Eyre Architects Gardens by the Bay 143
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

Comment [HP3]: Intelligent Building Energy reduction using Passive System Design

waste stream into a resource stream of energy and nutrients. In parallel with the design competition and design development phase, NParks together with CPG Consultants and Transsolar Energietechnik, has been running a research project for several years to assess the required growing conditions for the target species and has analysed, designed and constructed six prototype glasshouses on the edge of the city to allow study of the behaviour of the plants under glass. As will be highlighted in this article, the results from this research have been used to develop and shape the design brief.

MASTERPLAN
The masterplan was developed to reflect the needs of the differing elements of the site. A key

decision was the placement of the conservatories within the gardens. The conservatories were positioned in the area of the site that will receive the highest solar exposure to maximize their daylight availability. The importance of the conservatory location decision is not likely to be felt for many years. This is because the gardens are set to be surrounded on three sides by the new financial centre of Singapore, which will grow progressively with time. As such, poor positioning of the conservatories would result in them being viable at the time of opening, but progressively losing their viability to maintain the differing planting of horticultural species required due to the effects of overshadowing. As a part of the masterplan development process, a number of servicing requirements were identified for the conservatories. Air movement and a cooling strategy were identified as key elements of the buildings and ones likely to have significant architectural implications, as these are usually placed at the perimeter of a building which for the proposed designs would have meant at ground level. To minimize the architectural implications of the conditioning and ventilation elements, it was decided to integrate the servicing of the conservatories into the fabric of the gardens by the use of the supertree structures. This eliminated issues such as hot exhaust air being emitted into the pedestrians realm. Once the decision had been made to integrate services to the supertrees, they were exploited further to act as harvesting points for renewable energy. There is a large dehumidification requirement for the conservatories. Desiccant dehumidification offered the possibility of using heat to drive the dehumidification process rather than through the use of chilled water with overcooling and reheating. As the dehumidification is driven via a heat-fuelled process there is the opportunity to use low-grade heat from renewable resources to run the cycle. To meet this heat requirement, biomass boilers were identified at an early stage. These would also need to be remote from the conservatories to minimize services interference and so a remote energy centre was integrated into the masterplan. Apart from energy issues, the masterplan paid considerable attention to creating sustainable water cycles. The site of the GBBS project sits on the edge of the Marina Reservoir, a tidal estuary turned into a fresh water marina and reserve by a barrage or dam. In developing the masterplan, key concepts of water retention, conservation and purification were incorporated into the design. These were developed further into a series of detailed measures on the site. Direct rainfall from within the GBBS catchment will need to be filtered and cleansed of the high content of nitrogen, phosphorus and suspended solids arising from the gardens operation, prior to discharge into the Marina Reservoir. The very peaky nature of tropical storms makes this a complex task of retention and release and uses aquatic landscapes to remediate the received water through a series

of interconnected lakes, filter ponds and planting troughs. Water treatment is therefore undertaken in a sustainable manner through the use of aquatic plants. Water-sensitive urban design strategies have been further developed and detailed with water quality models, for incorporation into the gardens design. Much of this has been undertaken by Grant Associates and NParks, together with CPG Consultants and Cardno.
144 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)
Water Aquifer Boreholes for Desiccant Cooling Mister / Condensation Water for Irrigation Rainwater Retention Tank Aeration System in Basin Stromwater By-pass Coach Park Run-off to Petrol Interceptors Interceptors (40m3/s) Supertrees Irrigation System Solar Power Irrigation Pump Water Catchment Lake Gardens Drain Towards Cascades and Aeration Cascades and Aeration Hydraulic Irrigation Supertree with Fountains and Irrigation Driven by Potential Energy Cascading Water Fall and Reed Bed Filtration / Aeration Waterfalls Water Courses Drought Bypass Link to Fill Lake Vegetation Buffers for Natural Water Filtration Fragile Forest (Indigenous Rainforest Planting) Mainly Hard Landscaped Rainwater Collection Bowl Intensive Water Filtration

FIGURE 4 Concept masterplan water sustainability strategy (Note: the detailed implementation differs slightly from this concept arrangement.) Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 145
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

As part of the masterplan development and implementation process, Atelier Ten developed and utilized a number of sustainability implementation plans (SIPs) for the development tailored to different members of the development cycle. These covered all areas of environmental sustainability potentially affected by the development, and aimed to finely weave holistic ideals of sustainability into the project. Benchmarking of the sustainability initiatives on the project is being progressed through Singapores Building & Construction Authority (BCA) Green Mark scheme. The BCA Green Mark scheme is a Singaporean equivalent of LEED or BREEAM and is a comprehensive gauge of a developments sustainability measures.

CONSERVATORIES DESIGN
The design condition inside the CDB during the day is 25C, with a relative humidity (RH) level of 60 per cent. During the night this is reduced to 17C, but the RH level rises to 80 per cent. Every night for a month, for one month in three, the night temperature falls to 13C, this is a signal to the plants that winter has passed and that they should spread their flowers for spring, allowing the plants to bloom four times a year. It is known as the ignition temperature. In the CMB, the temperature regime is broadly the same but the moisture content is

significantly different. During the daytime, the design condition for the CMB is 25C at 80 per cent RH or higher. This is approximately 4 g/kg more water embodied or approximately 10 kJ/ kg higher enthalpy in the atmosphere compared with the CDB. During the night this is lowered to
FIGURE 5 Illustration showing the relationship of the conservatories to other elements in the gardens, namely the supertrees and the energy centre Wilkinson Eyre Architects
40 kj/kg 60 kj/kg 70 kj/kg 80 kj/kg 90 kj/kg 100 kj/kg 30 kj/kg 20 kj/kg 10 kj/kg 0 kj/kg 10 kj/kg 15 10 5 0 5 10 10 12 14 Humidity Ratio [g/kg] 16 18 20 22 24 8 6 4 2 0 15 DB Temp (C) 20 25 30 35 40 30% Rel. Humid. Cool Dry-Day Cool Dry-Night Cool Dry-Night IGNITION IGNITION Cool Moist-Night Cool Moist-Day Cool Moist-Night Psychrometric Chart

FIGURE 6 Psychometric chart with typical years weather for Singapore overlaid and the conservatories design conditions Atelier Ten 146 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

a temperature of 17C at 80 per cent RH. Again for nights during one month in every three, the temperature is reduced within this biome to 16C at 80 per cent RH for ignition. The science of daylighting for plants is well developed for commercial growing, but less well developed for this type of horticultural display application. To evaluate how to determine an adequate brief for the conservatories, NParks and its technical brief refinement team of CPG Consultants and Transsolar looked at similar projects worldwide and undertook climatic analysis of a number of locations. From this analysis they identified that the Eden Project in Cornwall had achieved very successful sustained growing conditions with a peak light level of 45,000 lux being achieved (note 45,000 lux is approximately 100 times the target lighting level in a typical office environment). The design brief for the facade development was therefore to achieve 45,000 lux for more hours in a year than are achieved at Eden. It was also identified that light levels in excess of 45,000 lux may not be completely harnessed by plants for growth. Hence, light that is in excess of this level does not add to the horticultural goals, but creates heat that would need to be dissipated

through a mechanical cooling process. An inevitable consequence of this much light in the building is a high amount of solar gain. Although the tropics can be quite cloudy, there are long periods of intense sunshine such that the balancing of daylighting and thermal requirements was one of the major challenges faced by the design team.

PASSIVE DESIGN
The least sustainable option for the development would have been to ignore the daylighting requirements and to use high-intensity electric lighting throughout the building to produce the required growing conditions. Therefore, extensive optimization was undertaken on the envelope to optimize it for natural daylight penetration and solar control. Extensive facade optimization was carried out to ensure that the building delivered sufficient daylight for the range of planting proposed
Fin Truss Grid Shell
Daylight A nalysis Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0.0 - 10.0 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Daylight A nalysis Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0.0 - 10.0 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Daylight A nalysis Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0 - 200 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Analysis Grid Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0.0 - 1000.0 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Hours Daylight A nalysis Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0 - 200 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Hours Hours Analysis Grid Hours Above 45KLux Value Range: 0.0 - 1000.0 Hours (c) ECOTECT v5 Hours Hours
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.0 0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.0 0.0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 0.0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200

Comment [HP4]: Technics

FIGURE 7 Cladding optimization studies. Fin structure (left), bowstring truss (centre) and gridshell with external beams (right) Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 147
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

for the biomes. This optimization included the generation of multiple structural solutions to minimize the effect of obstructions to light penetration from the permanent elements. The competition scheme had assumed that a combination of transparency with fixed structural/ shading elements would be sufficient to provide daylight and limit excessive solar gains but this proved to be too simplistic with the variety of sun angles experienced. Post competition, the brief for daylight and solar controls were refined based on results from experiments within the prototype glasshouses. This resulted in refinements to the structural solution to accommodate the horticultural requirements. Options analysed included an optimized solid fin design, a truss system and a grid shell tied to more slender primary beams.

This analysis was performed by using daylight simulation software to assess the availability of daylight for the entire inhabited volume for each hour of a typical year. It was also used to evaluate both instantaneous, peak and cumulative annual illuminance levels in addition to calculation of the frequencies of achieved illuminance levels. The analysis was performed using a combination of proprietary software (Ecotect and Radiance being the main tools) to evaluate daylighting and bespoke software generated by Atelier Ten for the project. As part of the facade optimization exercise, a review of differing glazing types was undertaken from manufacturers all over the world. This was, in part, based on a database built up during the earlier research conducted as part of the development of the prototype glasshouses. It was evident from the outset that with the intensity of the tropical sun it would be essential to have some selectivity on different frequencies built into the glass. With the need for high daylight transmission, the use of body tinting of the glass would not be an option and so the design moved quickly towards selective coatings. Single glazing would have been preferred on the grounds of cost, weight and ease of construction. However, it was also identified very early on that the use
Hours Above Lux Level 100.00% 90.00% 80.00% 70.00% 60.00% 50.00% 40.00% 30.00% 20.00% 10.00% 0.00% 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 Lux Level Exceeded 25000 30000 35000 40000 45000 45,000 Lux 50000 55000 60000 Cool Dry Biome Average North Edge Illumination Levels Modified for Mullion & Gridshell Shading 10P2018 Gardens By The Bay Conservatory Complex Eden Gardens By The Bay

FIGURE 8 Daylight frequencies as simulated inside the cool dry biome and compared with Eden Atelier Ten 148 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

of double glazing to control radiant transmission and condensation was inevitable. The design is based on a highly selective double-glazed unit (DGU) that allows approximately 65 per cent of the incident daylight to pass through with only 35 per cent of the solar heat being transferred to the space. This selectivity is achieved by a low-e coating that is applied to the inner face of the DGUs outer sheet. The low-e coating acts as an infrared light reflector filtering unwanted heat from the daylight spectrum. By placing this on the outer sheet it allows absorbed heat on the coating to be transmitted by convection to the external air rather than internally. ETFE, which was used at the Eden Project, was also considered but dismissed as it currently is not able to offer these levels of solar selectivity. Through the studies of the facade, it was

Comment [HP5]: Systems

apparent that there were times when more light was reaching the space than was necessary to meet the horticultural requirements. An external shading system has been developed, which will be actively controlled to modulate internal daylight levels to the optimal point. This will save energy by reducing the solar thermal heat transmitted when light levels are satisfied. The shades will be individually addressable, in addition to providing shade for daylighting control they are to be used for localized human comfort control. The shades will be arranged to be selectively deployed to provide patches of shade for visitors to stand within during a sunny day and reduce their exposure to solar radiant energy and improve comfort. The shading system also provides additional resilience in case of system failure, as they can be deployed to further reduce cooling loads inside the building. Both conservatory forms were optimized to allow maximum daylight penetration. The form of the CDB was modified to create an overhang to the north facade, which slopes backwards from a peak. This creates a glass face that is inclined outwards at the same angle as the peak annual radiation for that orientation at the extreme sun angle and hence a completely shaded facade. As no beam radiation penetrates the CDB north facade, it allowed the shading to be refined in the area to omit this facade. Even in the shade, the diffuse radiation is still intense in Singapore, which requires the north facade to use the same highly selective glass as the rest of the envelope.

ACTIVE SYSTEM DESIGN

There are two primary cooling mechanisms for the exhibition spaces within the CDB: chilled fabric cooling and displacement ventilation. The CMB uses chilled fabric, a hybrid arrangement of displacement ventilation and direct evaporative cooling and humidification. The chilled fabric is formed by placing polythene pipework within the floor screed of all the hard landscaped areas and pathways within the biomes. These pipework circuits will be supplied with chilled water from the central
Shaded Internal Brightness (Current scheme) Shaded Internal Brightness = Internal Brightness (1 - Shading) 80,000 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 Estimated Internal Illuminiance Level (Lux) 10,000 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul A ug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Comment [HP6]: Systems

Internal Brightness with glass as tendered (beforeblinds added

Internal Brightness = GHI Glazing Transparency (1- Structural shading) 80,000 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 Estimated Internal Illuminiance Level (Lux) 10,000 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul A ug Sep Oct Nov Dec

FIGURE 9 Comparison between daylight performance without shades (left) and with shades (right) Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 149
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

plant. The system works primarily by absorbing solar radiation before it has a chance to be converted into heat in the air via convection. By doing so, it lowers the volume of air required to condition the building, substantially reducing the fan power required. The chilled floors also lower the visitors environmental temperature, which

will increase their perception of comfort. Integrated displacement ventilation is the primary conditioning method of both biomes. This system will supply air from diffusers integrated into the vertical surfaces of the planter beds and through displacement diffuser terminals placed throughout the biome. Multiple studies of how these systems could be integrated were carried out to inform the detailed design and integration. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) were used as an active design tool for the project. Multiple studies at different supply rates, initially driven by hand calculations and dynamic thermal modelling, were used to determine the optimal ventilation rate based on the predicted internal stratification of temperature within the building. Ventilation rates, and the consequent thermal stratification, were determined as appropriate for both human comfort and the specific horticultural requirements of both biomes. The early CFD studies identified that the air surrounding the mountain within the CMB would become hotter than acceptable with a pure displacement system. A hybrid ventilation system was then developed that supplied air in a displacement manner at low level and the top of the mountain. At each level of the mountain in between the top and bottom, jet diffusers are used to drive local mixing, limiting the localized stratification. Above the mountain, the air is allowed to stratify, as per a displacement system, before being extracted and recirculated. As fresh air is continuously required for the biomes, there is some excess air that has to be discharged to the atmosphere. At the top of each biome, excess air is allowed to be purged through the facade via operable glazing panels. It is predicted that this air will usually have a higher enthalpy than the ambient condition and so heat recovery has not been used for exhaust air. Within the CMB, the temperature and humidity conditions are above those that can be met via the supply of cooled air alone. The design condition would require that the supply air be supplied at substantially more than 100 per cent RH, and therefore other moisture addition is required in the space. While latent gains within the space will provide a substantial moisture addition, direct evaporative misters will be utilized within the space to add additional moisture and provide localized direct evaporative cooling. The horticultural brief requires the ability to vary the temperatures inside the space. This is achieved by varying the chilled water supply temperatures to the conservatories to allow the air temperature to be modulated. This will result in energy savings from running the chillers at higher evaporating temperatures during normal operation. The systems need to be versatile to meet the large range of internal space conditions.

DESICCANT CONDITIONING
Desiccant conditioning systems work by directly removing vaporized water in air

streams. Combined with conventional cooling, this technology allows air to be supplied to a controlled psychometric point (i.e., cooled and dehumidified) with less energy consumption than the conventional approach of over-cooling and wasteful reheat. The desiccant dehumidification process works to remove moisture from an air stream while maintaining constant enthalpy. This process acts to increase the temperature of the air stream, which can be rejected by free cooling to condenser water from cooling towers. The combined process of dehumidification, followed by free cooling, results in latent and sensible cooling being derived. Liquid desiccants are to be used on the project. Liquid desiccants are chloride salts, lithium chloride in this case, dissolved in water. A highly concentrated, strong salt solution will
150 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)
Floating Walkways Umbilical Walkways Floating Walkways Terraces Supply air distributed via walkways. Distribution above floor structure. Adaptation to gradients. Continuous or individual vents. Supply air distributed via walkways. Distribution above floor structure. 'plug-in' distribution for localised control or buffeting. Adaptation to gradients. Continuous or individual vents. Supply air distributed via walkways. Distribution above floor structure. 'plug-in' distribution for localised control or buffering. - Adaptation to gradients. Continuous low-profile vents. Fixed walkways adaptable to surrounding changes. Discrete outlets in terraces and sidewalls Distribution above floor structure. Fixed or 'track' type arrangement. Fixed or flexible locations.

FIGURE 10 Displacement ventilation terminal studies Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 151
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

extract water from an air stream when it is passed over pads filled with the solution or through a curtain of solution sprayed into the air stream. This process also has the benefit of removing the majority of microbiological contamination in the treated air streams. During the air drying process, the solution increases in volume as it absorbs moisture from the air. This creates a weak solution, which requires the water to be boiled out of it before it can be reused for dehumidification. The benefits of using a liquid desiccant system compared with a solid desiccant wheel is that the supply and regeneration air streams are divorced and the heat required for regeneration can be directly applied to the desiccant, rather than to an air stream passing through a wheel. This increases the overall system efficiency compared with a solid desiccant system. It is also possible to effectively store energy in the form of liquid desiccant, if necessary. To regenerate the desiccant, heat is required to evaporate water out of the solution. For this project there are three possible sources of heat used for this regeneration process: from the conservatories, from solar hot water collectors

and waste heat from a biomass combined heat and power (CHP) installation.
xy z

18.000 20.400 22.800 25.200 27.600 30.000 Temperature (C)

FIGURE 12 Cool moist biome hybrid ventilation CFD study. Inducing air from jet nozzle diffusers at intermediate levels within the mountain locally suppresses thermal stratification Atelier Ten
18.000 20.400 22.800 25.200 27.600 30.000 Temperature (C)
xy z

FIGURE 11 Cool moist biome displacement ventilation CFD study. This demonstrates that the stratification over the height is unacceptable for the horticultural requirements of the space Atelier Ten 152 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

FIGURE 13 Psychometric charts showing the conditioning regime to achieve the differing internal design conditions. The psychometric process is one of dehumidification with free cooling followed by sensible cooling Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 153
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

Due to the displacement ventilation arrangement, the air near the top of the conservatories will be significantly warmer than the design condition. Extracted air from the top of the CDB is returned through an underground tunnel to adjacent supertrees within the gardens. These house a plant room in the foundations, which contain the desiccant regenerator equipment. The temperature and dryness of the extracted air increases the efficiency of the system. The primary heat source for the desiccant systems is from the waste heat stream from a 7.2 MW biomass boiler fed with horticultural or timber waste and a 1 MW (electrical) steam turbine CHP system. The primary use of this system is to generate heat for the desiccant systems and power for electrical chillers providing conventional cooling to the biomes. As the dehumidification load is dependent on the external temperature and humidity, the load varies throughout the day. Sizing of the pipework between the desiccant regenerators and dehumidifiers allows for some storage of a strong desiccant solution. As the desiccant stores energy in the form of latent heat or vaporization of water rather than the specific heat of water, the strong solution stores about ten times as much energy as an equivalent volume of chilled water. This storage allows for internal load buffering to the system.

CENTRAL PLANT DESIGN

A central energy centre provides power, cooling and heat to the biomes. Within the energy centre, a biomass CHP plant is used to generate heat and power. This is fed into absorption and conventional chillers to provide a variable temperature chilled water circuit to the biomes. The primary heat source for the desiccant systems is from the waste heat stream from a 7.2 MW biomass boiler and a 1 MW (electrical) steam turbine biomass CHP system. The intention is for the biomass to be sourced as horticultural residue largely from urban street tree pruning operations throughout Singapore. The residue is chipped, semi-dried and burnt in a superheated steam biomass boiler. At present, this horticultural residue waste is land filled and so this installation acts to turn a waste stream into an active energy supply that displaces the cost of imported utility energy. The biomass boiler and steam turbine do

not modulate very easily, the latent regeneration load fluctuates with time, and so a balancing heat dump is required to stabilize the system. Absorption chillers are to be installed to act as an additional heat dump while providing useful energy output. These work alongside conventional highly efficient centrifugal chillers to meet the sensible cooling requirements of the biomes. The chillers operate on a variable temperature circuit. This allows the chilled water supply, during the majority of the time, to be above conventional flow and return temperatures to meet the displacement ventilation and floor cooling loads. By operating the chillers at elevated temperatures, significant energy savings will be accrued from increases in chiller efficiency through elevated evaporator temperatures. During the night-time conditions, the use of the variable temperature circuit allows the lower conditions to be achieved within the conservatories by dropping the supply chilled water temperatures. Alternatives to how the biome supply air could be lowered to a cold enough temperature to achieve the internal space conditions had been considered, but were dismissed on efficiency or complexity grounds. These included the use of terminal DX coils installed within the primary air ducts or by the use of localized DX-based fan coils inside the space. Due to the way the biomass boiler combusts the fuel stock, there are two ash streams. The first is a fine ash that is high in nitrates and other fertilizer compounds. This ash could be mixed with the waste plant matter from the gardens to create high-grade compost. The second stream of ash contains the heavier density of particle and is taken offsite, it is hoped, to be mixed into concrete or aggregates. Because of the combination of CHP and photovoltaic (PV) electrical generation on site, careful consideration had to be given to switching controls during emergency shut down
154 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

FIGURE 14 Overall central plant schematic for the energy centre, conservatories and supertrees Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 155
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

and re-start, to ensure that there is no danger of partially energized networks being created. The use of these systems makes the provision of cooling to the exhibition spaces within the biomes carbon neutral.

SUPERTREES DESIGN
The supertrees are concrete and steel structures. They consist of a hollow concrete core surrounded by a diaphanous steel cladding arrangement. At the top of the core is a head which is clad in a membrane material and offers a near flat surface. While, in Singapore, the optimal angle for a solar collector is horizontal, any panel placed in the pure horizontal plane would result in a heavy maintenance burden due to cleaning. As such, the head of the core was angled slightly to a fall to allow for self-cleaning with rainfall. Evacuated tube solar collectors are mounted

at the top of several of the supertrees within the development. This heat, when it is available, could be used to partially drive the desiccant regeneration process. Evacuated tube collectors are to be used as they can typically generate higher temperatures than flat plate collectors and with increased temperature there is an increased efficiency of the desiccant regeneration. In addition, the supertrees also house PVs to further offset the sites carbon emissions. The structure of the supertrees requires there to be six primary beams that radiate from the centre of the structure. The solar collectors and PVs sit level with the top of the beams. As there are a limited number of solar collector manufacturers in the market some of the corners of the solar hot water collector modules have to slip under the beam. Photovoltaic panels are far more sensitive to shade than solar hot water collectors. Their non-linear response to shade can result in power reductions of up to 50 per cent when a single leaf rests on a panel. With this in mind, a number of panel combinations were developed to enable the PV modules to be arranged across the head of the supertrees in a manner that matched their aesthetic intent while maintaining each panels face level with the top of the beams.
FIGURE 15 Comparison of carbon emissions from cooling systems for conditioning of conservatories and displaced carbon from onsite renewable energy generation Atelier Ten 156 Davey et al.
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

Within the nearest supertree cluster to the central energy centre of the site, the largest supertree houses the main boiler flues from the site. This allows the gases that are the product of combustion to be dispersed at a level that is significantly above any habitable accommodation. The exhaust from the desiccant regeneration is likewise discharged through the cluster of supertrees adjacent to the conservatories.

CONCLUSION
It is not just one element of the Gardens by the Bay, Bay South project that sets it apart in terms of sustainability and servicing approach. There are other buildings that, for instance, have biomass CHP systems implemented with varying degrees of success. There are many buildings that have automated shading systems. It is the agglomeration of multiple little steps that makes this project truly exceptional in its aspirations. Each steps design improvement has resulted in the effect on subsequent steps being magnified. This process continues through the implementation of the project as solutions are detailed and developed. Approaching the project from a first principle basis allowed the design team and Atelier Ten to take a long view of the key process and demands of the development. By having this distance, solutions to the key demands could be sought in ways that looked to simultaneously resolve, either partially or fully, other unrelated issues. It is by resolving these different drivers in a progressive and integrated manner that results in a project that seeks to unify both its internal demands and its wider context. A key part of this integration was the working

relationship established between the client NParks and the central design team for the project consisting of Grant Associates, Wilkinson Eyre, Atelier One and Atelier Ten, supported by a local design team of executive engineers and architects predominantly consisting of CPG Consultants and Meinhardt. The highly collaborative and integrated nature of the project reflects the working operation of the different designers including their ability and openness to engage in each others fields.
COLLECTOR LEVEL SECTION E LIGHTNING INITIATOR BONDED TO METALLIC CLADDING STRUCTURE EVERY 20M OF CLADDING CIRCUMFERENCE. CONTRACTOR TO ALLOW 6 No. LIGHTNING PROTECTION CONTROLLED ADVANCED TRIGGERING DEVICE BONDED TO METAL STRUCTURE FOR PIPEWORK ARRANGEMENT REFER TO SOLAR HOT WATER COLLECTORS SCHEMATIC: 2018-E00-MS-4-111 SOLAR HOT WATER COLLECTOR. EVACUATED TUBE TYPEWITH PUMPED FLOW TOTAL (45No.) ACCESS & MAINTENANCE METHODOLOGY TO BE CONFIRMED REFER TO STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS DRAWINGS & SPECIFICATION SPECIALIST CONTRACTOR TO CONFIRM MOCULE SIZES AND DIMENSIONS TO MAIN CONTRACTOR BEFORE START OF WORKS ON MODULE SYSTEM

FIGURE 16 Solar thermal collectors integration to supertree heads Atelier Ten Gardens by the Bay 157
Intelligent Buildings International 2 (2010)

Solutions where waste streams can be actively processed to yield multiple resources through normal building operation start to make triple bottom-line sustainability savings. In the GBBS case, it is the use of a current waste stream of horticultural cuttings to create the primary conditioning energy for the site and, as a by-product, generate fertilizer. As the proceeding design steps to limit the conditioning load had been effectively undertaken, the carbon emissions associated with the conservatories conditioning can be offset by onsite renewable energy. The question of what is an intelligent building is one that has no clear answer. Is it one that is automated? One that responds to the surroundings of the project? One that responds to the needs of the users of the project? One that consumes little energy? The Gardens by the Bay, Bay South project can answer in the affirmative to all of these points and therefore we would argue that it should be classed as an intelligent development.

NOTES
1 The Gardens by the Bay is a collection of three waterfront gardens, with a total area of 101 ha. The Bay South Gardens is the largest at 54 ha. The other two Gardens are the 32 ha Bay East Gardens and 15 ha Bay Central Gardens.
COLLECTOR LEVEL SECTION E LIGHTNING INITIATOR BONDED TO METALLIC CLADDING STRUCTURE EVERY 20M OF CLADDING CIRCUMFERENCE. CONTRACTOR TO ALLOW 6 No. LIGHTNING PROTECTION CONTROLLED ADVANCED TRIGGERING DEVICE BONDED TO METAL STRUCTURE KEY MODULE 1 MODULE 2

TOTAL TYPE 1 (45 No.) REFER TO PHOTOVOLTAIC SPECIFICATION TOTAL TYPE 2 (45 No.) ACCESS & MAINTENANCE METHODOLOGY TO BE CONFIRMED REFER TO STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS DRAWINGS & SPECIFICATION SPECIALIST PHOTOVOLTAIC CONTRACTOR TO CONFIRM MOCULE SIZES AND DIMENSIONS TO MAIN CONTRACTOR BEFORE START OF WORKS ON MODULE SYSTEM PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS PRODUCE CURRENT WHEN IN LIGHT. CARE TO BE TAKEN DURING INSTALLATION TO AVIOD THE RISK OF POTENTIALLY LETHAL ELECTRIC SHOCKS. CONTRACTOR TO COVER PANELS UNTIL SYSTEM IS FULLY COMMISSIONED

FIGURE 17 Photovoltaic panel integration to top of supertree heads. Close co-ordination was carried out with the structural design to ensure that no fixed shading was provided to the panels Atelier Ten

Images: