The Green Building Top 5 - September 9, 2015

America’s First Hemp House Pulls CO2 From the Air

Hemp is making a major comeback around the world. In the U.S., five states have legalized the recreational use of cannabis and hemp-based building materials are now gaining popularity. The first house built in the U.S. with hemcrete was constructed in Asheville, North Carolina and the 3,400 square foot Push House boasts a number of eco-friendly features. Read Full Article

Energy-efficient Homes Undervalued by Mortgage Lenders

Energy-efficient homes could increase in value if banks and building societies used more accurate estimates of household energy bills in their mortgage calculations, a new report has found. Under the Mortgage Market Review (MMR), lenders are required to assess what repayments a customer can afford considering both their income and major expenditures. This includes energy bills which make up approximately 7.2% of an average person’s outgoings. Read Full Article

LEED for Resilience? Paying for Shock-proof Infrastructure

Think of it as LEED for resilience — but with the added bonus of lowering your insurance rates. That's the vision behind architecture and design firm Perkins+Will's new “RELi” resilience standard, an endeavor aimed at encouraging city planners, project developers and businesses to build and operate facilities that can better withstand shocks such as super storms, sea-level rise, drought, heat waves or even longer-simmering social unrest. Read Full Article

Transparent Batteries That Charge in the Sun Could Replace Smartphone Screens

A group of Japanese researchers have managed to improve the design of a transparent lithium-ion battery so that it’s now able to recharge itself when exposed to sunlight without the need for a separate solar cell. The transparent battery was first developed by the researchers, led by Kogakuin University president and professor Mitsunobu Sato, back in 2013. The electrolyte used for the battery’s positive electrode is made mostly from lithium iron phosphate, while the electrolytes used for the negative electrode include lithium titanate, and lithium hexafluorophosphate. Read Full Article

The US Just Made Its Largest Investment In Renewable Energy Yet

The U.S. government just made its largest renewable energy purchase to date. The U.S. Navy has invested an undisclosed amount in the Mesquite solar farm in sun-rich Arizona, allowing for an expansion of the facility that is anticipated to make it the world’s largest solar farm. Read Full Article