World Expo 2008: Digital Water Pavilion

The theme of next June’s World Expo 2008 in Zaragoza, Spain is (of course) sustainable development, and the Digital Water Pavilion is one of the more interesting green design concepts that you’ll see. The Pavilion will use a computer to control water down to the level of individual drops, which in turn can create patterns of images, words, and sentences within the falling water. One of the ideas behind the Pavilion is that its architecture can be configured as necessary; walls can appear out of thin air within the 164’ long, 33’ wide, and 16’ high structure, whose floors will be made from an absorptive aluminum sponge material. Also, as you’ll see in the video, the roof can be lowered when the building isn’t in use. The water itself will fall from valves that are spaced closely together along a pipe attached to the steel roof (and that open and close several times each second). Proximity sensors will recognize people approaching and create gaps in the water wall, allowing for dry passage to the Pavilion’s café and tourist office. The water is recycled and will of course evaporate, helping to cool the building naturally in a nod to traditional Spanish architecture.

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