BI MIMETIC applications in architecture and built environment illustrated through a biomimetic high-rise as a prototype ASHISH J. KHEMCHANDANI APPROVAL CERTIFICATE Thesis report semester 10 D.C. Patel school of Architecture, APIED Vallabh Vidhyanagar, Gujarat This is to certify that the thesis titled ‘BIOMIMETIC APPLICATIONS IN ARCHITECTURE AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT ILLUSTRATED THROUGH A BIOMIMETIC HIGHRISE AS A PROTOTYPE’ done by Ashish J. Khemchandani, Roll no 07SA109 is hereby approved as a credible work on the approved subject, carried out and presented in a manner sufficiently satisfactory to warrant its acceptance as a prerequisite to the degree for which it has been submitted. It is to be understood that by this approval the undersigned do not necessarily endorse or approve any statement made, opinion expressed or conclusion drawn therein, but approves the study only for the purpose it has been submitted and satisfies herself as to the requirements laid down by the Thesis Committee. External Guide: Prof. Himanshu D. Chhaya Signature and Date: External Examiner: Signature and Date: Internal Examiner: Prof. Preety Shah Signature and Date: Chairman, Thesis Committee: Prof. Salil Bhatt Signature and Date: Acknowledgements An expression of gratitude by extending a sincere thanks to: Prof. H.D. Chhaya, my guide. My father, Mr. Jayanti T. Khemchandani for his sustained interest in the topic, helping me find the right information and introducing me to the right people. My mother Mrs. Anita Khemchandani for her support through out the semester and life. Prof. Preety Shah, my internal guide through the semester; Dr. Shishir Raval for the early discussion and direction; Prof. Rashmi Dave for the guidance through out the thesis; Mr. Sakthivel Ramaswani for his monograph on Biomimicry; Prof. Shashikant Kumar for early discussions; Dr. Eugene Tsui for sharing information about his works; botanist Dr. Harsha Shah for sharing her information about indigenous species of plants and her views on sustainable landscaping. My younger brother Arkin Khemchandani for reading and reviewing the entire monograph to check for corrections. The friends at APIED for creating a stimulating and fun-to-be-in environment during the years I spent at the institute. In particular I feel obliged to mention the following people: My senior and close friend Vishnu Venugopalan for his early discussion; friend and junior Ashita Muralidharan without whom the report would‘ve been full of spelling and grammatical errors; friend and colleague Manoj Patel for sharing his knowledge on climate responsiveness; chums and room-mates Vinit Prajapati, Ronak Sheth and Saumil Patel; juniors Drashti Sarang and Aanchal Agarwal for their help while making models in the initial part of the semester Dharmik Joshi for his help with softwares early this semster. Finally and most importantly, all the authors the works of whom have made this study possible; particularly Dr. Janine Benyus, Sakthivel Ramaswami, Javier Senosiain and Petra Gruber for their books and thesis, extracts from which will be found at several instances in this thesis. i Preface The word has caught on, for a term that was coined as recently as the 1950s, Biomimetics was popularized only in the 90s and since then more and more professionals from various fields are realizing its benefits in the long run and its immense potential. Having said that, a quantifiable research has already been done and progress has been made in the field in a relatively short time and the study is merely a – what one might say – ‗briefing up‘ to its current state. The study is an introduction to a very vast subject which may only in the recent past have been consciously termed as an independent field although the fact remains that biomimetics has been an age old practice in various aspects of human life since commencement of civilization. Biomimetics since its defined inception in the mid 20th century has been associated with various fields including but not limited to industrial design, various engineering disciplines (such as automobiles, avionics, etc.), material technology and architecture. This study primarily aims at understanding biomimetics and its applications as a whole and the presence of its various aspects in architecture, built environment and allied fields in particular. Further more, an important objective of the study is to explore the various possibilities held by biomimetics in architecture, understanding the difference between the conventional approaches to architecture and the ‗biomimetic‘ approach, and how and to what extent can architecture possibly benefit from the new (read biomimetic) approach. The design program – ‗Biomimetic High-rise‘ attempts to address certain current designing and building methodologies with climatically and ecologically ideal additions or alternatives as a design solution by implementing the study of biomimetics in the design to the extent possible. It should be noted that only a small but significant part of the study is reflected in the final design constrained by a defined site with factual site conditions on a real location. Ashish J. Khemchandani June 2012 APIED, SPU ii Contents Acknowledgements i Preface ii I Understanding Biomimetics 1. The terminology 05 2. Why choose Biomimetics? 08 2.1 The case of architecture 09 3. Conventional top-down approach vs. bottom up approach 12 II Applications in Architecture and Allied fields 4. An overview of Biomimetic applications in various fields 16 5. Math and Geometry in nature 5.1 Symmetry in nature 22 5.2 The Golden proportion in nature and architecture 23 5.3 Fractals in nature 28 6. Organic architecture and Bio-morphism 6.1 Organic architecture 32 6.2 Biomorphism 36 7. Various nature-inspired technologies and their probable applications 7.1 Form and Structure based 39 7.2 Function and Detail based 51 8. Existing examples of biomimetics in architecture 64 9. Biomimetics in Landscaping and Town-Planning 7.1 Biomimetics in Town-Planning 80 7.2 Biomimetics in Landscaping 83 III Biomimetic High-rise – A Prototype 11. Existing examples of bio-climatic high-rises 87 12. Bio-mimetic high-rise in a Hot and Dry climate 99 Conclusion iv Bibliography vi iii Understanding Biomimetics 1. THE TERMINOLOGY Biomimetics or Biomimicry, from the Greek words βίος (bios), meaning life, and μιμητικός (mimeticos or mimesis), meaning to imitate or ‗having an aptitude for mimicry‘. Biomimetics as per the Webster‘s dictionary means – ‗The study of the formation, structure or function of biologically produced substances and materials (as enzymes or silk) and biological mechanisms and processes (as protein synthesis or photosynthesis) especially for the purpose of synthesizing similar products by artificial mechanisms which mimic natural ones.‘ Other similar terminologies include Bionics, Bio-inspiration or Biognosis. Bionics was coined to mean ‗the science of systems which have some function copied from nature‘. Bionics entered the Webster dictionary in 1960 as ‗a science concerned with the application of data about the functioning of biological systems to the solution of engineering problems‘. 1. Nature as a model – Biomimetics is a new science that studies nature‘s models and then imitates or takes inspiration from these designs and processes to solve human problems, e.g. a solar cell inspired by a leaf. 2. Nature as measure – Biomimetics uses an ecological standard to judge the ‗rightness‘ of our innovations. After 3.8 billion years of evolution, nature has learned: What works. What is appropriate. What lasts. 3. Nature as mentor – Biomimetics is a new way of viewing and valuing nature. It introduces an era based on what we can extract from the natural world, but on what we can learn from in. 05 The above is an extract from Biomimicry – Innovation Inspired by Nature by Janine M. Benyus who discusses her insights about how natural technologies and phenomena have evolved over the millennia to get closer to perfection then humans can ever consider to be, something that can be taken into account to take inspiration from while coming up with the next human innovation. Benyus in her book divines a canon of nature‘s laws, strategies and principles: o Nature runs on sunlight o Nature uses only the energy it needs o Nature fits form to function o Nature recycles everything o Nature rewards co-operation o Nature banks on diversity o Nature demands local expertise o Nature curbs excesses from within o Nature taps the power of limits In a biomimetic world, we would manufacture the way animals and plants do, using sun and simple compounds to produce totally biodegradable fibres, ceramics, plastics, and chemicals. Our farms, modelled on prairies, would be self-fertilizing and pest-resistant. To find a new drug or crops, we would consult animals and insects that have used plants for millions of years to keep themselves healthy and nourished, Even computing would take its cue from nature, with software that ―evolves" solutions, and hardware that uses the lock- and-key paradigm to compute by touch. In each case, nature would provide the models: solar cells copied from leaves, steely fillers woven spider-style, shatterproof ceramics drawn from mother-of-pearl, cancer cures compliments of chimpanzees, perennial grains inspired by tallgrass, computers that signal like cells, and a closed-loop economy that takes its lessons from redwoods, coral reefs, and oak-hickory forests. As recently as the 1800s, Hispanic settlers of the San Luis Valley of Colorado learned about proper insulation from a burrowing mammal called the Columbian ground squirrel. 06 The biomimetic process Reference List: New to the mountain climate, the 1. Biomimicry: Innovation settlers didn‘t know how hick to make Inspired by Nature (book) their adobe walls to buffer winter and -Janine M. Benyus summer temperatures. To this day, 2. Biomimicry: An analysis of contemporary biomimetic adobe walls in the valley are built as approaches (thesis) -Sakthivel Ramaswami thick as the average depth of the squirrel‘s bedroom chambers.