IIT Bombay students build house that runs on zero electricity
The team called “SHUNYA” consists of engineering and architecture students from IIT Bombay. The house that they have successfully built is fully functional, well-furnished with three rooms, a kitchen, sufficient lighting and air conditioning.
A team of students from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay have designed and built a house that requires no electricity and even generates extra energy, storing it for future use. The group is set to take part in the Solar Decathlon 2018 which will take place in Dezhou, China, and are the only team from India who have been selected for the challenge.
The team called “SHUNYA” consists of engineering and architecture students from IIT Bombay. The house that they have successfully built is fully functional, well-furnished with three rooms, a kitchen, sufficient lighting and air conditioning. It runs on energy collected from rooftop solar panels and feeds excess energy to a grid on sunny days.
Sustainable Habitat for an Urbanizing Nation by its Young Aspirants (SHUNYA) has also patented a solar air heater which can reach a maximum temperature of 220 degrees centigrade. The students had earlier taken part in Solar Decathlon Europe, 2014 and had received an honourable mention in “sustainability”.
The Solar Decathlon is an international competition that challenges teams from across the world to build a fully-functional solar-powered house with cutting-edge technology in the competition site within 12 days. It is also termed as the ‘Olympics of Solar Powered Houses’.
Team SHUNYA’s ‘Project Solarise’ will showcase a 200 square feet +1 floor villa which uses a HVAC system, designed specifically for the climatic conditions of Andhra Pradesh capital Amaravati. Its build will be completely automated, set up using hybrid construction and will amalgamate traditional architecture, contemporary interior designs, modern lifestyle and futuristic amenities.
The members of SHUNYA are also taking part in awareness activities to promote sustainable construction and dream to introduce the concept to the market in hopes of transforming the Indian building market by demonstrating that sustainable housing can be affordable.