Natural lighting, rainwater recycling, new energy vehicles... Daxing International Airport's green exploration
2024-08-14
한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina
Beijing Daxing International Airport integrates low-carbon concepts into the entire process of construction and operation
Green exploration of a large airport
Core Reading
Beijing Daxing International Airport is not only a modern aviation hub, but also a green airport. During the entire process of construction and operation, it has incorporated the concept of green and low-carbon development, realizing natural lighting, collecting and reusing rainwater, using new energy vehicles... Every ecological and environmental protection detail enriches the green exploration of this large airport.
Beijing Daxing International Airport. Photo by Ma Wenxiao (People's Vision)
46 kilometers south along the central axis from Tiananmen Square, under the blue sky and white clouds, Beijing Daxing International Airport is like a "golden phoenix" spreading its wings.
In the nearly five years since it was put into operation, this "new national gate" has connected to more than 200 domestic and international destinations, with a cumulative passenger throughput of 120 million, becoming a new business card for the capital Beijing's opening up to the outside world.
The "Golden Phoenix" pursues the blue sky and greenery. In the terminal building, the Brazilian trees and monstera on both sides of the four-story corridor are full of vitality; next to the airport, the lotus flowers in Xingwang Park are in full bloom and wild ducks are playing... Among the greenery, the ingenuity of green development is condensed in every detail, and the concept of green and low-carbon runs through the entire process of airport construction and operation.
Save energy
Planning and design focus on reducing energy consumption and maximizing natural lighting and ventilation
The weather was fine, and the sun shone through the "skylight" on the fourth floor of the airport terminal, illuminating the entire terminal. The electronic screen at the information desk displayed in real time: "The temperature is 25.5 degrees Celsius, comfortable."
"The 'skylight' is connected to the C-shaped column, which is not only a highlight of the integrated structural design of the terminal, but also can maximize natural lighting." Zhang Yan, Energy and Environment Business Manager of the International Science and Technology Department of Beijing Daxing International Airport, introduced that in addition to the 'skylight', the terminal also has a large-scale skylight roof, with a centrally located aluminum mesh sunshade glass to achieve a direct light blocking rate of 59% in summer conditions and a daylight coefficient reduction rate of 37%, achieving a balance between daylighting and reducing radiation. There is almost no need for lighting during the day, which effectively saves indoor lighting energy consumption.
Energy saving in lighting depends not only on planning and design, but also on smart technology. Many parts of the terminal adopt streamlined design, which is beautiful and puts forward new requirements for lighting. In order to make the best use of "light", the airport has formulated a benchmark lighting schedule based on the 24 solar terms, and connected 405 lighting control units using a network system to innovatively create a "constant illumination" adaptive control strategy. "When the sun is strong, the lights will automatically dim or turn on in groups, and automatically increase the brightness in rainy weather, which not only reduces the workload of manual decision-making, but also responds more sensitively to different lighting conditions, and achieves real-time and fine adjustment." Zhang Yan introduced that compared with the fixed time switch mode, this method can save 35% of electricity and save 2 million kWh of electricity throughout the year.
In addition to lighting, another major energy consumer is the air conditioning system. How to reduce the energy consumption of air conditioning? The terminal uses double-layer low-emissivity glass to reflect external heat; electric and pneumatic skylights are installed on the roof to achieve natural ventilation; during the transition season, when the outdoor air temperature is suitable and can basically meet the indoor needs, the air conditioning system can be turned off and fresh air can be used; the on-site airlines are linked to share flight information, so that the air conditioning system in the baggage area can be turned on when people come and off when people leave...
In addition, the airport has also built a large-scale coupled ground-source heat pump system, which combines ice storage and electric refrigeration technology, supplemented by regional gas boiler peak load regulation, effectively solving the heating and cooling problems of the airport's 2.57 million square meters of supporting buildings. It is reported that from 2020 to 2023, the total amount of geothermal energy extracted by the ground-source heat pump system is equivalent to saving 15,004 tons of standard coal and reducing carbon emissions by 40,500 tons.
Scientific use of water——
Promote water-saving appliances, collect and reuse rainwater, and enhance the storage capacity of "sponge airports"
In March this year, Beijing Daxing International Airport was selected as one of the top ten classic cases of water conservation in China in 2023. "Water consumption at airports has always been high. Saving water is a powerful tool for us to build a world-class green airport and can set a benchmark for water conservation at airports around the world," said Wang Lubing, general manager of the International Technology Department of Beijing Daxing International Airport.
Saving water starts from the details. From the washbasins in the bathroom to the drinking water points in the mixed flow area, the airport has adopted all water-saving appliances with non-contact automatic closing and delayed induction opening and closing. "All key areas such as the terminal building use first-level water-saving appliances, and the penetration rate of water-saving appliances in the whole venue has reached 100%." Kang Chunhua, business manager of science and technology management of the International Science and Technology Department of Beijing Daxing International Airport, introduced. According to calculations, since its operation, the average annual water consumption per passenger at Beijing Daxing International Airport has been less than 30 liters, which is half of the water consumption target of the "14th Five-Year Plan" of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
In addition to saving, we also need to increase revenue. The roof of the airport terminal is equipped with two rainwater collection pools with a total capacity of 6,000 cubic meters. After being treated to meet the standards, rainwater can be used as cooling water for air conditioning circulation and as irrigation water for the terminal's finger gallery garden. In addition, the airport also uses permeable bricks, sets up sunken green spaces and various water storage facilities to facilitate the accelerated infiltration and collection of rainwater, achieving the natural accumulation, natural infiltration, natural purification and sustainable water circulation of rainwater, and utilizing more than 10 million cubic meters of precipitation each year.
Collecting rainwater is also closely related to the safety of airport operations. Beijing Daxing International Airport is located in the Yongding River floodplain. The airport has many hardened roads. How to prevent waterlogging without affecting the safety of downstream villages and towns? At the beginning of planning and construction, the airport was positioned as a "sponge airport." Next to the airport, the Xingwang Lake, which was built simultaneously, is now full of rippling water and lotus leaves. "The original intention of building this lake was to enhance the airport's storage capacity and use it as a reservoir. Now it seems that it also has a high ecological value." Kang Chunhua said.
At the end of "water use", the airport insists on "no discharge" of domestic sewage, cleaning oil sewage, deicing waste liquid, etc., and realizes full collection, full treatment, and full reuse. "Especially in winter, the chemical oxygen demand of deicing waste liquid is high. If it is discharged into rivers and lakes without treatment, it will have adverse effects on water quality and aquatic life." Kang Chunhua introduced that for this reason, Beijing Daxing International Airport has built an airport deicing liquid regeneration and treatment system to achieve zero outflow of deicing waste liquid and protect ecological safety.
Low carbon operation——
New energy vehicles accounted for nearly 80%, and more than half of outbound flights achieved "reduced runway takeoff"
In the airport flight area, shuttle buses, aircraft passenger elevators, baggage tractors and other vehicles shuttle back and forth. Although they are of different sizes and models, they all have one thing in common - they are powered by electricity.
In the nearly five years since its opening, Beijing Daxing International Airport has strictly implemented the relevant requirements of "winning the battle to protect blue skies". As of the end of last year, new energy vehicles accounted for 79.19% of the airport's airfield, much higher than the 25% requirement in the "14th Five-Year Plan" Civil Aviation Green Development Special Plan.
The application of new energy does not stop there. Beijing Daxing International Airport has evaluated the problems that photovoltaic systems may bring about, such as runway safety, pilot glare, and electromagnetic interference. After continuous optimization, the construction plan has achieved controllable safety impacts. "We built a photovoltaic system next to the runway in the airfield." Zhang Yan introduced that the airport is currently vigorously promoting the construction of solar photovoltaic systems in areas such as parking buildings and roofs of cargo areas, which can save 1,900 tons of standard coal annually.
To use new energy, it is also necessary to pay attention to the details of operation.
Many yellow lifting devices on the ground around the docked aircraft are eye-catching. "This is a well-type aircraft ground air conditioning system, which can provide cooling and heating services for aircraft during parking, avoiding the need for the aircraft auxiliary power unit to start the air conditioning during the docking period, thereby reducing fuel consumption." Zhang Yan added, "When not in use, the equipment can also be completely lowered underground to reduce the wiring and load of the bridge."
The "skylight" connected to the top of the C-shaped column. Photo by our reporter Wang Zhou
The operation mode is also being optimized. Driven by the Civil Aviation Administration of China, 53% of outbound flights at Beijing Daxing International Airport have achieved "reduced runway takeoff", that is, aircraft use shorter taxiways to enter the runway on the basis of meeting the takeoff runway distance and ensuring safety, reducing the taxiing distance. It is estimated that carbon emissions can be reduced by 6,380 tons throughout the year.
"Last June, we launched the 'straightening' pilot project, flexibly used aircraft control transfer points, strengthened communication and coordination with air traffic control, and allowed more and more inbound and outbound flights to 'go straight and not take detours'," said Zhang Yan. At present, Beijing Daxing International Airport has an average of more than 40 "straightening" flights per day, saving an average of 131 minutes of ground taxiing time per day, and is expected to save 1,168 tons of fuel and 6.84 million yuan in fuel costs annually.
The "Golden Phoenix" is pursuing green and is always on the road.
