Eco Factor: Diatom stone fossil sculpture with green energy generating solar cells.
We have already seen many ingenious ideas popping-up in the 2010 Land Art Generator Initiative Design Competition, but non like this one here. Thomas Laureyssens has proposed an installation that pays homage to the species of algae that generated biofuels. Envisioned for a site between Saadiyat Island and Yas Island, the Diatom Project includes one or more sculptures of an enlarged diatom stone fossil placed on the desert sand.
Laureyssens collaborated with a biolab to take and analyze samples of local diatom species and produced microscopic images along with a microscopic 3D laser scan. These images helped in designing the entire sculpture. Diatoms are a major group of unicellular algae found in marine and fresh waters and damp soils. The Diatom Project incorporates shaped solar cells, making it an energy producing sculpture. The aesthetically-appealing sculpture is being seen as a the beginning of a new era of renewable technological excellence.
Via: LandArtGeneratorInitiative
