Issuu

portfolio

Undergraduate Thesis

Housing

Edge of Tomorrow

Playful Palms Collective

Breath of Fresh Air

Mitigating Air Pollutants

Landscape

Lofted House Embracing the

EDGE OF TOMORROW

A Replicable Model For Flood Protection

Partner: Jeremy Goldberg

Instructors: Cordula Roser Gray, Dr. Rebecca Choi, Todd Erlandson

Undergraduate Thesis 2024

Sea level rise and storm surge floods drastically change urban coastlines worldwide and redefine how millions interact with the threshold between water and land.

Downtown Miami has few connection points for pedestrians to interact with the adjacent Biscayne Bay. The low seawall along the city’s edge is insufficient to stop heavy inundation.

An opportunity arises for a new flood protection system that allows humans to connect to the water while providing ample flood protection.

Edge of Tomorrow is an innovative, modular, and deployable system that prioritizes permeability of sight and human habitability. Its inflatable technology effectively mitigates flooding when needed, offering a new way for pedestrians to experience the urban coastline.

For the full thesis document visit https://issuu.com/maxkronengold/docs/ edgeoftomorrow

COASTAL CITY VULNERABILITY

Miami as a Case Study

INFLATABLE TECHNOLOGY

Inflatable storm surge systems are used in various environments due to their deployability, affordability, and durability. “When filled with water, the weight increases approximately 400 times, becoming stable and irresistible to extreme conditions.”

For this project, a series of geometric shapes used as breakwater mitigators were tested for the ability to aggregate and inflate. Ultimately, the truncated octahedron was chosen.

Coffer Dam - Dam It Dams Inc.

LATENT

In its latent state, the Edge of Tomorrow becomes an extension of the coastal architecture. Spaces can become occupied, and a playscape program emerges. Inflatable modules allow for personal engagement. One can sit, relax, bounce, and touch the inflatables to enable visitors to interact with and learn about this unique mitigation architecture.

In its active state, during shock scenarios and extreme weather conditions, the Edge of Tomorrow’s inflation modules absorb the storm surge. At the same time, the rest of the structure dampens the effects of the oncoming waves.

These typologies are customized for the current programmatic elements of the Miami Riverwalk along Biscayne Bay while directly responding to the storm surge levels on the site. The typologies can be customized for any city based on its needs.

+9 ft. Storm Surge

Existing Edge

Latent Condition

Active Condition

+9 ft. Storm Surge

PLAYFUL PALMS

A Catalyst For Community In Its Most Playful Form

Instructor: Emmanuel Osorno

Housing Studio

2023

Rooted in the power of playfulness, Playful Palms, a collective housing community, brings people together through spatial connectivity and abstract forms.

Designed to end the dormant hallway, Playful Palms uses a circular common space corridor offering social connection and the flexibility of privacy for residents. The units are modular, each designed to promote interaction within them and with one’s neighbors.

Playful Palms acts as a breathable structure, creating a “thermal chimney” that allows air to pass continuously through all floors. This allows for blending outdoor and indoor space, creating an environment connected to the outdoors.

The modularity and ability to adapt make the structure applicable anywhere in the world. Playful Palms ultimately creates a playful environment that harmonizes home and community.

The unit design promotes socialization within and beyond its walls. It is divided into three zones: private, wet space, and public. The public space allows the unit to open to the collective hallway.

Existing Site

Carve

Fragment

Puncture

Project

Raise

Playful Palms includes three distinct buildings using the same principles and modules. The plan’s openness allows for a breathable structure, allowing air to flow constantly.

BREATH OF FRESH AIR

Mitigating Air Pollutants Through Algae Photobioreactors

Instructor: Zaid Kashef Alghata

Advanced Research Studio: Domesticating Bigness

2023

Air pollution has an extensive and detrimental impact on human health. Harmful pollutants, such as fine particulate matter, continue to surge in urban environments.

Many neighborhoods in New Orleans are subject to the effects of air pollution, specifically residents located near the I-10 expressway. A sufficient method of capturing air pollutants in the city is needed.

An opportunity arises to develop a series of climactic devices to capture and recycle air pollutants while creating safe zones for people to inhabit.

Breath of Fresh Air uses algae photobioreactors through nine climactic devices designed to capture air pollutants and use their biomass as a recycled product. The natural algae-based system offers an organic approach to reducing harmful air pollution.

For animations visit https://max-kronengold.com/breath-of-fresh-air

ALGAE PHOTOBIOREACTOR

University of Kentucky

“When used in bioreactors, algae is 400 times more efficient than a tree at removing carbon dioxide and harmful substances from the atmosphere.”

For this project, nine machines of varying speeds and sizes were designed and developed using photobioreactor technology.

The research investigated current government initiatives to improve environmental protection while examining spending per industry sector. Continued investment in fossil fuels and harmful chemicals has consistently highlighted the need for innovative environmental protections.

Shower - Moderate Output, Large Scale

An apparatus and method for showering clean air.

This system allows clean air to be dispensed from above, allowing individuals to breathe purified air.

The climactic device is useful due to its conditional variability and can be placed in various habitats, ranging from a sidewalk to a park.

Standing under this device instantly creates a safe zone from polluted air, like a laboratory cleaning shower.

MEASURMENT ZONES

Measured with PMS5003 Particulate Matter Sensor

POLLUTION ZONES Areas Vulnerable to Harmful Air Pollution

SITE ACTIVATION

The final device placement highlights the areas of activation on the site based on the levels of pollutants captured by the PMS5003 Particulate Matter Sensor. Once the devices are placed, these locations provide safe zones of clean air for the area’s inhabitants.

LOFTED HOUSE

A Home Embracing the Forrest

Instructor: Emmanuel Osorno

Housing Studio

2023

Located in a forrest, the Lofted House creates a harmonious relationship within a household and with the surrounding landscape.

Anchored above the ground, the Lofted House follows a similar design to a tree, supported below and evergrowing above. The house mimics this idea, creating a separation between the ground plane and the livable portions of the house.

The house is fragmented into small pieces based on program, fostering connectivity and socialization through open space and a cascading floor plan.

As is felt and seen within the forest, sunlight is broken up between the leaves of trees, creating shaded areas. The facade design mimics the impact of leaves through punctured holes in a curtain wall.

The curtain creates moments of privacy while light can bleed into the structure. In some areas, the facade is cut away, exposing the house’s interior to the landscape.

DEFINE The Initial Geometry Massing

DIVIDE Allocating Zones for Program CARVE Forming Cascading Floor Plates RAISE Lifting from the Ground Floor for Privacy

The floor plan divides the house based on public and private programming. As one rises through the entrance, openness and sound thrive on the lower floors. While ascending, the rooms become increasingly closed off, signaling the private sleeping corridors of the house. Each bedroom has access to a balcony, reconnecting the residents to the surrounding environment floating within the trees.