BACKGROUND The design research is inspired by my recent travel and long-term study of
computational
modeling
and
physical simulation
In New Orleans, I saw people learning from the lesson nature taught them. The levee system built by the US army corps is rising a huge question and reflection. Instead of confronting sea level rise and increasing storm risk, my argument for the design is learning to live with water. Leonardo Da Vinci was obsessed to water throughout his whole life. Through rigorous observation and hydraulics experiments, he accomplished the planning of a canal to render Florence navigable from the sea. From his period, people always recognize water as a complicated thing and were afraid of it when it becomes unpredictable.
‘the water wall’, photograph token on Veterans Memorial Bridge, Vacherie, LA, United States, @jqzzz.com
WATER AS THE LANDBUILDER This design proposes a long-term green infrastructure
that
could
satisfy
2010
both dredge material beneficial use in
BUILT AT MASONVILLE DREDGED MATERIAL CONTAINMENT FACILITY
Chesterpeakbay and local landscape quality improvement. This series of scale-up Baltimore shoreline migration maps show the 200-year’s decreasing of natural land for causes below: 1. serious erosion caused stronger storm sedge 2. sea-level-rise 3. insufficient sediment from upstream.
1960s
BUILT IN COX CREEK DREDGED MATERIAL CONTAINMENT FACILITY
The increasing dredge need of Baltimore Channel requires more space for dredge material. However, the Baltimore shore area is heavily occupied by the industrial facility and could hardly build more Dredge Material Container Facilities (DMCF) such as Masonville DMCF and Cox Creek DMCF. Instead of long-distance costly beneficial use, this is a vision for the next generation of green infrastructure that is related to individual safety and property in an unpredictable future.
SHORELINE CHANGED LEGEND 1840s 1930s 1970s 1990s
1840s 1930s 1970s 1990s
DESIGN CONCEPT Water can be both a destroyer and a builder
The challenges of sea level rise, increasing storm and flooding risk, insufficient sediment, and accelerating erosion are all relative to losing land. The design intervenes with the breakwater as a medium regarding water as a land builder. Based on physical & digital simulation, the design proposes a series of breakwaters trapping sediments potentially form new land. Unlike the thriving land restoration project like Mid-Chesapeake Bay Island Ecosystem Restoration, the design focuses more on improving the surrounding environment including residential & industrial areas. Beyond simulation, it also conceives how human beings as part of nature could engage in this intervention.
Coal Transportation Infrastructure (pipe)
Coal Ship & Dredging Ship Heavy Metal (Hg) Processing & Cooling Pool
Coal Transportation Infrastructure (Track)
Herbert A. Wagner Generating Station (Industry) Herbert A. Wagner Generating Station
Industry
Existing Grorin (110 meter)
Wave Simulation Grids
Residence
Stoney Beach Condominiums
Mean Sea Level
Stoney Beach Condominiums (Residence)
DESIGN MANIFESTO When considering the term “infrastructure,” several adjectives immediately come to mind: “purposeful,” “unsightly,” “performative,” “robust,” “artificial,” “useful,” and “deteriorating.” In simple terms, physical infrastructure can be defined as a purposeful alteration of natural systems constructed by humans for the benefit of humans to address a particular societal need or want. A more honest characterization of the term would include the caveat that the benefit to humans often comes at the expense of nonhumans. Whether it be stacking stones to alter the movement of the waves, erecting bridges and tunnels to enable the passage of vehicles, or excavating large swaths of land so we have a place to put our trash, physical infrastructure is humankind’s attempt to alter, manipulate, and/or dominate nature in an effort to perpetuate its own existence. But perhaps physical infrastructure is best characterized by contradictions. It is intended to support one form of life (humans) often at the expense of another (nonhumans). Its physical form is a static structure, but its effects ripple outward and are constantly in motion. It is a fixed, long-term solution that rarely accounts for its long-term consequences. It enables life to expand to new areas while removing life from those same areas. It is, far too often, an enduring relic of yesterday, not a tool for meeting the needs of today. Above all else, physical infrastructure is notorious for its deleterious ecological impact. Moreover, infrastructure’s environmental impact is not restricted to its immediate vicinity. First, there is the material extraction and depletion of resources necessary for the construction of any infrastructure project. Second, there is the movement and displacement of countless tons of soil, resulting in the release of massive amounts of carbon back into the atmosphere. Finally, there is the tremendous amount of fossil fuels consumed in the process of extracting resources, transporting material and equipment, and constructing these large-scale infrastructure systems. Through this combination of material extraction, soil displacement, and fossilfuel consumption, among other things, humanity’s ever-increasing need for additional physical infrastructure has played and will continue to play a significant role in expediting the climate crisis. This cycle will only perpetuate as the adverse effects of climate change are inevitably addressed with the creation of more infrastructure.
INSPIRATION FROM PHYSICAL SIMULATION BASIC FORM PROTOTYPE DECISION MAKING Through multiple experiments, I found arched placement of breakwaters has below strengthenes: 1. multiple angles of breakwater edges efficiently disperse the energy of large waves from multiple directions. 2. remain wave energy flows through the gap of breakwaters is more consistent and stable. It enables an effective land formation process. 3. the build-up land turns to be connected by their sector edges with a beautiful gradient change.
PHYSICAL SIMULATION: Running a simulation on the geomorphology table exploring form performance using pairs of parameters pre-set based on storm risk data in Baltimore
Some observations coming from a series of simulations on the right: 1. The height and length of a straight gravel breakwater greatly decide the performance of reducing wave energy. The sediment is not stable behind the breakwater. 2. The arching shape of the breakwater help with stabilizing the sediment aggregating behind the breakwater. The wave energy is effectively dispersed compared to a straight shape. 3. The distance between two straight breakwaters decided the sediment movement and land-forming process.
Simulation Number: 01 Form: Gravel - Straight & Arching Wave Frequency: 0.9 round/second Wave Height: 2.4 inches Wave Speed: 10.5 inches/second
Simulation Number: 02 Form: Gravel - Straight & Arching Wave Frequency: 1.2 round/second Wave Height: 2.8 inches Wave Speed: 13.0 inches/second
Simulation Number: 03 Form: Brick - Straight Wave Frequency: 0.8 round/second Wave Height: 1.8 inches Wave Speed: 11.5 inches/second
Simulation Number: 04 Form: Brick - Straight Wave Frequency: 0.8 round/second Wave Height: 2.6 inches Wave Speed: 12.5 inches/second
Simulation Number: 05 Form: Brick - Arching Wave Frequency: 0.7 round/second Wave Height: 3.1 inches Wave Speed: 14.5 inches/second
Simulation Number: 06 Form: Brick - Arching (orientated) Wave Frequency: 1.1 round/second Wave Height: 2.9 inches Wave Speed: 13.5 inches/second
4. The arching shape breakwater has the best performance on both wave energy dispersion and stabilizing the sediment in unpredictable wave conditions. 5. The direction and radius of an arching shape greatly decide how the land eventually forms.
Time 1 min
DESIGN METHODOLOGY physical simulation vs
RESET/CLEAN
high
ADD SEDIMENT
sediment amount & stability
0 min
low
A
B
C
30 min
ADD SEDIMENT sediment stack: C > B > A
Unlike the thriving land restoration project like Mid-Chesapeake Bay Island Ecosystem Restoration, the design focuses more on improving the surrounding environment including residential & industrial areas. Beyond simulation, it also conceives how human beings as part of nature could engage in this intervention.
55 min
25 min
The challenges of sea level rise, increasing storm and flooding risk, insufficient sediment, and accelerating erosion are all relative to losing land. The design intervenes with the breakwater as a medium regarding water as a land builder. Based on physical & digital simulation, the design proposes a series of breakwaters trapping sediments potentially form new land.
sediment stack: B > C > A
digital iteration
A
B
C
DIGITAL ITERATION After choosing arch as breakwater design form, this round of iteration help with determining the number of the breakwater and the length of a single module
This diagram has two parameters changing on the x-axis and y-axis. From left to right, the number of the breakwater is 10 (A), 7( B), 5 (C), and finally 4 (D). When it has shorter breakwaters, it has the best effect on dispersing the wave energy. However, the sediment distributes too much instead of being brought onto a single expanding area like iteration D. Considering the performance of both wave energy dispersion, sediment aggregation, and construction process, my design turns to choose iteration C as an ideal status.
Iteration A (10)
Iteration B (7)
Iteration C (5)
Iteration D (4)
WIND
STORM
-dominated
2023
2043 2033
WIND
STORM -dominated
2063 2053
2083 2073
2093
PROPOSAL PLAN (2122)
Based on WIND-dominated and STORM-dominated wave simulation, the final proposal plan responds to Baltimore’s wave condition. It offers an effective reference for further spacial design.
2103
2123 2113
TIMELINE
N
SPACTIAL FEATURES After choosing arch as breakwater design form, this round of iteration help with determining the number of the breakwater and the length of a single module
This diagram has two parameters changing on the x-axis and y-axis. From left to right, the number of the breakwater is 10 (A), 7( B), 5 (C), and finally 4 (D). When it has shorter breakwaters, it has the best effect on dispersing the wave energy. However, the sediment distributes too much instead of being brought onto a single expanding area like iteration D. Considering the performance of both wave energy dispersion, sediment aggregation, and construction process, my design turns to choose iteration C as an ideal status.
SPACIAL FEATURES SECTION B-B (2122) Space described by this section mainly includes: 1. agriculture land 2. beach & shoal 3. woodland
SPACTIAL FEATURES After choosing arch as breakwater design form, this round of iteration help with determining the number of the breakwater and the length of a single module
This diagram has two parameters changing on the x-axis and y-axis. From left to right, the number of the breakwater is 10 (A), 7( B), 5 (C), and finally 4 (D). When it has shorter breakwaters, it has the best effect on dispersing the wave energy. However, the sediment distributes too much instead of being brought onto a single expanding area like iteration D. Considering the performance of both wave energy dispersion, sediment aggregation, and construction process, my design turns to choose iteration C as an ideal status.
SPACIAL FEATURES SECTION A-A (2096) Space described by this section mainly includes: 1. vegetated shoreline 2. beach & shoal 3. woodland
SPACTIAL FEATURES After choosing arch as breakwater design form, this round of iteration help with determining the number of the breakwater and the length of a single module
This diagram has two parameters changing on the x-axis and y-axis. From left to right, the number of the breakwater is 10 (A), 7( B), 5 (C), and finally 4 (D). When it has shorter breakwaters, it has the best effect on dispersing the wave energy. However, the sediment distributes too much instead of being brought onto a single expanding area like iteration D. Considering the performance of both wave energy dispersion, sediment aggregation, and construction process, my design turns to choose iteration C as an ideal status.
SPACIAL FEATURES SECTION C-C (2123) Space described by this section mainly includes: 1. wetland (depth < 0.5 meter) 2. beach & shoal 3. woodland
SPACTIAL FEATURES After choosing arch as breakwater design form, this round of iteration help with determining the number of the breakwater and the length of a single module
This diagram has two parameters changing on the x-axis and y-axis. From left to right, the number of the breakwater is 10 (A), 7( B), 5 (C), and finally 4 (D). When it has shorter breakwaters, it has the best effect on dispersing the wave energy. However, the sediment distributes too much instead of being brought onto a single expanding area like iteration D. Considering the performance of both wave energy dispersion, sediment aggregation, and construction process, my design turns to choose iteration C as an ideal status.
SPACIAL FEATURES SECTION D-D (2123) Space described by this section mainly includes: 1. pond (depth > 1.0 meter) 2. bare heights ( peak ≈ 2.0 meter)
SUMMARY (in progress)
At this point, I had a clear topic studying the performance of designed infrastructure by applying a multiple-dimension modeling technique
Here are some questions and challenges in this design: 1. How to make a convincing proposal about construction planning in different phrases? How does the following construction step response to the performance of constructed infrastructure part? 2.. Is there a better way to determine the dimension of the breakwater by refining the simulation? Or do I need a different approach to assist with the existing simulation? 3. How far I should represent the interaction of both residential and industrial areas with my design?
‘Sketching Water’, photograph token on Peach Orchard Park , Baltimore, MD, United States, @Xuanqi Yan