Stanford researchers develop nanophotonic panel that reflects sun's heat out of the atmosphere

It sound like something out of a Sci-Fi movie.

Researchers at Stanford University have developed a nanophotonic material that not only reflects sunlight and prevents heat from being absorbed, but it actually beams the thermal energy at a specific wavelength so that it leaves the earth's atmosphere.

A recent post on the Green Prophet blog details the discovery, which, if developed and implemented on a mass scale, would go along way toward improving the energy efficiency of buildings.

For instance, the Stanford research team, led by Shanhui Fan, professor of electrical engineering, said that by covering just 10% of a roof with the nanophotonic material would mitigate about a third of the building's cooling load, according Green Prophet.

(http://www.greenprophet.com/2013/03/nanophotic-building-panels-beam-sunlight-and-heat-into-cold-space/)

Earlier this month, my colleague and I presented a session to a group of civil engineers and transportation agencies about the tech trends in the AEC space. Along with advice on how to prepare your plan for controlled collaboration, we also talked through some practical use cases. One such use case was especially interesting, as it outlined a challenge not unfamiliar to government agencies who are contemplating the leap from paper to digital processes: how to securely migrate workflows.

For an 1893 academic building in the Collegiate Gothic style at Bryn Mawr (Pa.)

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Upgrading windows: repair, refurbish, or retrofit [AIA course]

Building Teams must focus on a number of key decisions in order to arrive at the optimal solution: repair the windows in place, remove and refurbish them, or opt for full replacement.

Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, East Lansing, Mich. Photo credit: Justin Macono

| Apr 15, 2014

12 award-winning structural steel buildings

Zaha Hadid's Broad Art Museum and One World Trade Center are among the projects honored by the American Institute of Steel Construction for excellence in structural steel design.

| Apr 15, 2014

First look: Zaha Hadid reveals designs for dreamy sculptural hotel - CORRECTED

Hadid's design, which will become the fifth hotel tower in the City of Dreams entertainment hub, features a latticed exoskeleton enveloping the building's exterior. The 40-floor, 150,000-square-foot space is envisioned as a monolith with voids carved throughout.

David Chipperfield Architects has won the Nobel Center architectural competition

| Apr 15, 2014

Chipperfield's sparkling brass-clad scheme selected to be new home of Nobel Prize

The distinctive building, with its shimmering vertical brass elements and glass façade design, beat out two other finalists in the Nobel Center architectural competition.