PopSci unveils eco-friendly city of the future

June 17, 2008   by Jozef Winter

Imagine the city of the future, now imagine that it’s the coolest city ever, because, well, it is. PopSci has put together what is probably the most comprehensive model of a futuristic city which utilizes green technologies and we have to say, it’s awesome. Like the current Masdar project, this Megalopolis showcases variety of differing solutions to energy and transportation, but being a concept, it has a breadth that one just can’t achieve while building in the desert. We’ll take you through a few of the amazing ideas they’ve put together, but there’s a lot more here, so take a look.

Transportation

A Pod Car, a small two-seater vehicle which would be found at major hubs around the city, and stored almost like shopping carts, would be available to commuters which you could just walk up to and drive away in, similar to Paris’ highly successful Vélib bicycle rental program. They would sport solar panels on their roofs, and pump electricity into the grid when charged and docked.

Automatic buses, computer-controlled and fueled with biodiesel and electricity, would ply the city streets along pre-set routes, reducing congestion, waiting times, and ground-level pollution, moving a greater number of people efficiently.

A maglev Skytran, an overhead mono-rail of sorts, could carry nearly 15,000 passengers per hour, delivering them to popular destinations in the city at 150mph and at 1/10th the cost of light-rail.

Energy / Electricity

Maglev wind turbines, each producing power for 800,000 homes, would be running just outside the city, powering buildings and charging electric transport. More conventional wind turbines, with a bit of a flair, would line the sides of highways, capturing the energy from the air movement caused by passing vehicles.

Tidal and wave power systems would be installed in areas where water was in abundance, increasing the reliability of the alternative energy grid.

Paint-based solar cells could cover almost every conceivable surface, providing electricity in areas that would otherwise be unsuitable for solar panels or other technologies designed to harness solar energy.

Finally, a crowd farm at a train station, harnessing power from the thousands of foot steps hitting the floor on a daily basis, could power nearly 6,500 LED lights, almost enough to light the entire building.

Green Buildings

Most buildings would have integrated solar panel exterior walls, enabling them to produce almost enough power to run themselves without the grid. These walls would also channel rain water into collection basins where it would be treated and put into good use.

Geothermal systems would reduce the energy required for heating and cooling of the buildings, and there is even a design to have giant salt-filled ‘pillows’ over the building. This salt would melt in the heat, keeping that heat away from the inside of the building, and when cool, act as an insulator, keeping the building warm.

Vertical farms, producing food and water for 50,000 inhabitants would be built, rotating slowly to enable plant growth around the entire circumference of the structure. The farms would be robotically tended from seeing, watering, and eventual harvesting.

via PopSci