Thermochromic Display Systems for Architectural Design

Description

Some materials signal environmental changes dramatically by shifting color or form. Increasingly, these materials that respond to temperature variation are being integrated into product and building design. Sustainable solutions often harness solar and wind energy to create electric power that can be used for architectural displays; however, perhaps the displays themselves can directly react to sunlight and wind. Can thermochromic and thermally expansive materials be used in architectural signage and display, revealing full-color and print on a building facade with a zero energy footprint?This research will create a ‘palette’ of safe materials and design a prototype of a solar-reactive display system that can bloom with color in the bright mid-day sun and return to grey at twilight. Working with chemists and physicists, the interdisciplinary art and design project studies the aesthetic possibilities of simple, safe reactions of materials to sunlight.