Who said that Urban Acoustic Walls needed to be boring and ugly?
The Basilisk is a modular flexible wall that can adapt to different landscapes and needs. The modular design allows to adjust the wall in height and form to adapt to any area and has many advantages:
Easy to build. A modular wall that is scalable, cheap to install, easily adaptable and that would create a visually appealing object that fits in its surroundings.
Economical. The structural system and modular design makes it easy to transport, build and maintain.
Beautiful. The smooth and always changing shape and color makes the wall a beautiful thing to look at. The finishes, that can be chosen individually, include plants and grasses, absorbing materials and in the modules that are suitably oriented, photovoltaic panels. The vegetation as a finish makes the wall constantly adapt with its natural surroundings, becoming part of the landscape.
Efficient. The wall design is very effective in absorbing and breaking noise. The 1mx1m concrete module gives its mass impeding the noise waves to go through. The shape and positions on the module create a rugged surface that breaks the sound waves and the different angles of the modules assure that no sound will be reflected back to the source. The modules make an uneven surface which helps to break the noise waves avoiding sound reflection to the source. The solid concrete modules give mass, the attached absorbing finishes adapt to different noise levels. The different materials in sandwich help absorb and break more frequencies than a single material system.
Environmental. The tension based structure makes a very light, adaptable shape with few supporting elements, thus reducing materials. The materials are concrete, steel, cemented compressed wood, dirt, plants and photovoltaic panels producing electricity. All of these are easily obtained, manufactured and recyclable. The modularity makes it easy to build, maintain and remove without any damage to the environment.
The repetitive positioning of the modules with the different colors of the elements used, create a texture that reminds us of the Arabic tile patterns, these patterns then combined with the softness of the overall shape created by the tensile structure will make it look like a snake skin. These new feature in will be interesting and beautiful to look at from any distance. From an airplane it will look like a snake slithering in the landscape, from close it will be a series of patterns with warm tones blending into the landscape and from very close there will be plants and grasses growing and blurring the top of the wall with nature.
The materials used are all 100% recyclable and with recycled content, have no harmful substances, are readily available and easy to install and to take apart. Transportation is easy and requires no special equipment. The modules are small so no heavy machinery is needed to install them. It is scalable, the wall can continue whenever and as long as it is required with no need for demolitions or complex work.
The project when finished will not only be a pleasure to look at, but it will also capture carbon in its vegetation and its wood based absorbing panels. It will create habitat for local species, birds and insects will make themselves at home. The modules panels that are positioned in a way to utilize the sun energy will generate electricity.
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