The Clemson University design team Indigo Pine will be among 20 teams competing in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon this fall in California.Photography by Patrick Wright 

This fall, Clemson University will be one of 20 teams competing in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon in Irvine,Calif.The Solar Decathlon is a competition among collegiate teams to design, build and operate a solar-powered house that exhibits design excellence and optimal energy efficiency.Clemson’s team includes architecture, engineering, and social science majors. They have named their project Indigo Pine after two South Carolina crops.

The decathlon has 10 individual contests;five are juried (architecture, market appeal, engineering, communications, and affordability) and five are measured (comfort zone, appliances, home life, commuting, and energy balance).Some of the measured contest requirements are interesting.For example, in the appliance contest the teams have to wash a given load of towels. The towels are then returned to the jury where they are weighed to determine if they are more dry than before they were washed. In another contest, each house has provide an electric charging station for a car and teams have to drive their electric car a set distance. To ensure that the house is livable, one contest requires the teams host two, eight-person dinner parties for members of other teams. The rules say they must cook “real” food from an approved menu. Movie night for neighbors also is a requirement.......Continue Reading

> via islandpacket.com