SOLAR KITCHEN AUROVILLE

Type of building use: institutional building for visitors to AurovilleYear of completion:1997Built-up area: Presently about 2000 m2 Plot size: 3 acresLocation: Crown Urban Corridor, Auroville Climatic Zone: Hot Humid coastal zoneActual Occupancy: Cooking for 1000 person per meal time with seating for 350 at one serving.

Architecture

by: Suhasini Ayer

SOLAR KITCHEN AUROVILLE

General Information and Background •The Solar Kitchen building has been designed as a major collective kitchen for the Auroville community and was finalized in December 1997. Since then it has served lunches in its Dining Hall and in the same time sent lunches to different outlets like schools or individuals.

•It derives its name from the big Solar-Bowl on its roof, which provides part of the steam for cooking on all the sunny days of the year. The other part of the steam needed, is provided by a diesel fired boiler

In AurovilleThe first solar panels were installed in Auroville in the early eighties. Today, Auroville has more than 150 houses fully powered by photovoltaic panels and about 50 houses that use solar power in conjunction with a state grid connection. Some communities run solely on solar and wind energy. The total standalone photovoltaic energy capacity of Auroville is more than 15% of the total photovoltaic capacity in India.

•Solar energy in Auroville is used mainly for home lighting systems, pumping water for drinking purposes and irrigation, heating water for domestic purposes, and food processing. •Other solar applications developed are solar curing chambers for ferrocement prefabricated elements and solar concentrators.

LOCATION

SITE PLAN PLAZA & SOLAR KITCHEN

1 - SOLAR KITCHEN 2 - CROWN ROAD3 - PARKING4 - POUR TOUS - FINANCIAL SERVICE5 - MEDIA CENTRE AND LIBRARY6 - EXPANSION7 - PEDESTRIAN BOULEVARD8 - SEMI PAVED AREA9 - PLAZA COVERED10 - PLANNED GREEN AREA11 - MAHALAKSHMI PARK

 

PLAN

•A 15 meter diameter solar bowl is installed and operates at the Solar Kitchen to produce sufficient steam (600kg) to cook 2,000 meals on clear days.

•The system operates with a fixed spherical reflector made out of prefabricated ferrocement elements, fitted together and lined with 11,000 flat mirror facets.

•The moveable receiver is a 4 m long and 23 cm diameter wide structure kept in focus through a computerized tracking system.

•A heat transfer fluid is made to circulate in the primary loop and steam is produced in a heat exchanger and sent to double-jacketed steam cooking vessels in which food is prepared.

•The system is automatically controlled and hybridised with a diesel fired boiler to ensure that meals are always served in time, irrespective of the weather conditions

The solar bowl concentrator at solar kitchen

Another view of bowl

SECTION THROUGH DINING

INTERIOR OF KITCHEN

DINING WINDOW

ENTRY

NORTH FACADE

DINING HALL

Solar Kitchen 

The aim of the project was to build a demonstration project 

   a. In the use of SOLAR THERMAL ENERGY in steam generation, this in the case of this project will be used for cooking meals 3 times a day for about 1000 people.

   b. To support the organic farming sector of Auroville and the local villages by being the main purchaser for their products, this can be used for the meals prepared in the kitchen.

   c. To provide for the nutritional needs of the present community of Auroville (1700 inhabitants approx :) including the meals at the schools, work places and for special occasions.

   d. To be a demonstration project for Appropriate building materials and technology, Solar Passive Architecture and Waste Water Recycling.

THE SOLAR BOWL•The diesel boiler is stronger and contributes ¾ of the steam required during the morning.

•But at 11 am or so, the diesel boiler is turned off on sunny days, and the remaining cooking and the production of all hot water for cleaning up all the kitchen vessels is all done only by the solar bowl steam.

MECHANISM OF SOLAR BOWLSpherical reflectors