Cloud Skyscraper
We are in the era of rapid development of skyscrapers all over the world. It is no longer a farfetched dream for mankind to reach high above the sky: it has become a fairly common experience in numerous cities with the construction of high-rise structures. Yet, to artificially create living environments above the ground is dangerous and unhealthy, and presently it is without a doubt a detrimental idea to use these massive structures as an artificial living space. The question arises then, why build massive high-rise structures that require such tremendous efforts at the expense of our wellbeing?

Modern cities experience extreme heat island effects and unstable and unusual climate activities such as heavy rainfall and city floods. To design a skyscraper that is erected and designed not to be used as an artificial living environment but to benefit its environment so that it contributes to the city, we have taken the skyscraper’s condition into consideration. A noticeable condition that skyscrapers face is the presence of water in the air high above the ground. These water molecules come in various forms, such as moisture, fog, and clouds. As buildings get taller and bigger, the chances that a structure may come into contact with these floating water molecules greatly increase. Utilizing such existing condition, we propose a structure with the capability of absorbing water from heavy rainclouds such as nimbostratus and cumulonimbus that occur over a kilometer in height and cause heavy flood damage in cities, as well as water molecules from fogs, clouds and rain so that they can be collected, stored and gradually evaporated to supplement water moisture during hot and dry periods, ultimately causing evaporative cooling to occur. With this natural cyclical process that requires zero-sum energy input, the heat island effect is countered, temperature lowered and flood damage reduced. Since the water is collected only enough to sufficiently promote evaporative cooling (excluding the heavy rainclouds only found at the top of the structure, which are aggressively gathered) and all water collected are returned to the atmosphere, the natural hydrological cycle is not disturbed.

This process is made possible by the individual tetrahedron-frame modules that serve to collect, store, and evaporate water. The modules are designed so that each module connect and stack, creating a single structure that is capable of withstanding its structural load, water weight, and wind pressure. Each module contains water-absorbing panels that collect water from various water sources: when the panels saturate with water, the excess water flows downward to the water storage placed beneath the panels, where the water then slowly evaporates and cause evaporative cooling. When the water storage becomes full in a module, the excess water trickles down to the modules beneath, creating a constant flow of water from the top of the structure to the bottom. The top portion of the structure is designed to maximize water-absorption, constantly pulling water from heavy rainclouds that cause immense flood damage and swiftly direct the collected water down toward the bottom portion of the structure, where maximum evaporative cooling is necessary. Modules have a set ratio of the water-absorbing panels and water storages: the higher the building, the more water it collects; the lower the building, the more water it stores and evaporates. When clouds pass through the structure, allowing it to absorb water, the collected water will be visible, serving as a ‘water gauge’ that work to promote better environment, not just in the building itself but the city that it is located on.