Solar Decathlon
Northeastern University Solar Decathlon is an interdisciplinary team working to design and construct sustainable buildings in and around Boston. Affiliated with the U.S. DOE Solar Decathlon® Competition, we carry high standards to create net-zero solar buildings fit to serve the regional issues and housing stock needs of our surrounding communities.
Since 2002, the U.S. Department of Energy has hosted an annual collegiate competition that promotes sustainability, efficiency, and innovation in building design. The Solar Decathlon consists of two challenges: the Design Challenge, where students work to develop construction documentation that clearly depicts their novel ideas, and the Build Challenge, which allows students to see their designs come to fruition as they construct their project locally. Challenge submissions are evaluated based on their performance in ten distinct contests which can vary from year to year.
The Solar Decathlon competition is being introduced again to Northeastern University because of the breadth of the ten contests; since submission performance is dependent on a multitude of variables which can vary from architectural design and energy efficiency to financial viability and innovation, this club offers students the opportunity to gain experience working between disciplines to design an optimized project.
Open to both undergraduate and graduate students, the final goal of this club is to participate in the Solar Decathlon Competition Event that is hosted annually in Golden, Colorado. A group of students will get the opportunity to present the final design to a panel of industry leaders. The competition provides students the chance to showcase a holistic design as well as network with professionals in the industry.
Student Organization Advisor
mi.kane@northeastern.edu
Citizen-centric controls, infrastructure automation; community resilience; grid-interactive efficient buildings; sustainability
Related News
Solar Decathlon Team Looks to Design Net-Zero Housing Properties
The Northeastern Solar Decathlon team was a winner of the Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon Build Challenge, a distinction that came with $50,000 in funding. They are working to become the first collegiate Solar Decathlon Build Challenge team to build a multi-unit, energy-efficient structure in an urban environment. The team is led by students Aasav Harania, MS in Energy Systems, and Ted Walinskas, BS in Chemical Engineering and MS in Engineering and Public Policy, and is advised by CEE Assistant Professor Michael Kane.
Northeastern University Solar Decathlon Team Wins $50K in Contingent DOE Funding
Northeastern University’s Solar Decathlon team’s project won contingent approval to proceed in the 2023 Build Challenge from the Department of Energy (DOE) last month, a distinction that comes with $50,000 in funding.