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  Today Online 25 Mar 06
Chill out, do what comes naturally
To beat the heat, plant trees that actually give shade Weekend
Letter from Murali Sharma

Today Online 23 Mar 06
How to chill out the equatorial way
Replies to Edwin Yeo's article

 Today Online 15 Mar 06
Here's a cool way to make a million bucks
Edwin Yeo Tee Yeok

ON A sunny Sunday afternoon, as I was driving along the Benjamin Sheares Bridge, I found myself saying to my wife: "Singapore is such a beautiful country to live in, except that the heat is unbearable." Indeed, the view of the Central Business District skyline was made pleasant only because my car's air-conditioner was on full-blast.

That incident made me think a little deeper into our very existence here. Geographically speaking, our island's position is permanent (at least for the next few million years), so as long as we choose to stay here, the sun is also here to stay. And chances are, we will continue to depend heavily on air-conditioners.

Some have argued that in our hot and humid climate, "cool air" has gradually become a national strategic resource, just like water and land. I remember reading that air-conditioners were installed in all government buildings, on the basis that no one could have been expected to work effectively in the heat.

And yet, despite our heavy dependence on them, Singaporeans are neither renowned makers nor innovators of air-conditioning systems.

I have no specific numbers, but I am quite certain Singaporeans are among the highest spenders on air-conditioners in the world, on a per capita basis. Just walk around any Housing Development Board (HDB) estate and one will see all the ugly boxy compressor units sticking out like some parasitic fungus from the walls. Then there is the amount of energy these machines consume and the extra heat they collectively generate when they are switched on.

Year after year, as Singaporeans' buying power increases, the number of air-conditioner units has gone up as well. I remember when I was young, only the master bedroom of our family home was wired to a conspicuous window unit. The whole family of five would congregate in my parents' room on those rare occasions when my father agreed to "splurge" on the electricity bill. Today, not only are all the three bedrooms fitted with air-conditioners, many homes have also installed cooling units for the living room, dining room, and even the kitchen. I have also come across houses that have ducted air-conditioning systems that years ago would have made any shopping complex proud.

These days, the first breath of air that babies take is likely to have come through some sophisticated filtration system.

Yet, most Singaporeans are ignorant about the technology that goes into the air-conditioner, and the impact that these machines have on our environment.

Why has no one in Singapore ventured on a big scale into cooling system technologies ? just as Ms Olivia Lum of Hyflux has made a commercial success out of our water supply conundrum?

Surely, there is room for innovation in the air-conditioning department too. For example, to reduce the environmental damage and effectively manage national energy consumption levels, could HDB or the Urban Redevelopment Authority explore the feasibility of having residents subscribe to "piped-in" air-conditioning for their homes and offices through a centrally-managed network of air-conditioning ducts and compressor units installed across the island?

This entails research into new cost-effective "cool-air irrigation system" technologies which would be revolutionary, and, surely, worthy of a R&D grant. Can the technologists in our universities and polytechnics lead the nation into a cool new frontier?

This article was contributed by a reader.

Today Online 23 Mar 06
How to chill out the equatorial way

R&D on cooling technology: We're on to it
Mistress of dollar has killed both design and function
Centralised piping of chilled water cools a whole district
Letter from Associate-Professor Ho Hiang Kwee
Letter from Thomas Tyrone Beiron Tay
Letter from Lawrence Poon Lan Thang

With our tropical city so reliant on air-conditioning, why not invest in more innovative ways to keep cool", suggested reader Edwin Yeo Tee Yeok ("Here's a cool way to make a million bucks", March 15).

That warmed up debate: some of it serious, some quirky.

I refer to the interesting contribution from your reader, Mr Edwin Yeo Tee Yeok, who challenged Singapore to put more effort into research and development on cooling technologies and systems.

As an energy researcher, let me say we are aware of the importance of developing better cooling technologies and systems for a country like Singapore, and have several research projects related to improving the efficiency of air conditioning/cooling.

We have made recommendations on this as part of a study on how Singapore can reduce its carbon dioxide emissions. We have also proposed a research project to the National Environment Agency and the Nanyang Technological University, which is being evaluated, to look more closely into district cooling systems and integrated energy systems, and see if they can help us to provide cooling and comfort at a lower cost and higher energy efficiency.

No doubt the prospect of making money may be the driving force for enterprise, but the ethos of many great inventors and their innovations were for the betterment of mankind.

I won't quibble about the necessary motivations for improving our lifestyle, especially as we acclimatise to the artificial environment, which is contributing to the depletion of earth resources.

What is deplorable is that with cheap housing that has become the hallmark of the "beautiful" Singapore skyline, for the longest time we have sacrificed opportunities for better design and functional architecture in public housing simply because there was insufficient R&D on efficient equatorial ventilation and storm protection.

Look at our fabulous new bus shelters. The designs give advertisers vantage and offer the commuter little protection (except for bollards installed by the Land Transport Authority to prevent rampant buses from mounting the kerb).

The stillbirth of innovation in Singapore is a real problem and I believe this is what needs to be addressed.

Our civil authorities are so disconnected from the visionaries of the world--artists, poets, writers--that we tend to buy into our own glowing public relations and shy from looking hard at invaluable criticism in all forms.

What we have built (including perhaps that new "ugly necklace of a pedestrian bridge at Marina Bay") tend to strangle our tired urban landscape.

For over 20 years, my business has been in distributing equipment/systems that help conserve energy by maintaining the operating efficiency of air-conditioning equipment in large commercial and industrial buildings.

Recently, I distributed thermal energy storage/off-peak cooling systems.

While I applaud Mr Yeo's creative thinking, his suggestion of piped-in cold air through a ducting network across the island is not practical, as ducting is bulky and expensive, and hard to insulate for cold air distribution.

The idea of a central plant to provide cooling is not new. Two companies have ventured into district cooling, in which the concept of thermal storage is used to cut the cost of producing cold water for cooling.

The Jurong Town Corporation operates a district cooling plan in Changi, supplying chilled water by pipe to the surrounding commercial and industrial buildings, and a district cooling plant is under construction by a joint venture headed by Singapore Power to supply chilled water to the new commercial buildings in Marina South.

Today Online 25 Mar 06
Chill out, do what comes naturally
To beat the heat, plant trees that actually give shade Weekend
Letter from Murali Sharma

The recent letters on keeping cool in Singapore has set readers thinking and talking. I read with interest the two recent letters (March 23) about central cooling technology.

We should not use technology that will cost much to install and more to maintain. We should go for methods that are cheap and good. Why don't we go back to basics, to nature, to solve the heat problem?

At one time, Singapore was famed as the Garden City. We prided ourselves on having more trees and greenery than many much bigger countries. I am afraid that we have slipped somewhat in the last two decades.

We may have more trees than five years ago, but what sort of trees? Many parts of Singapore are being upgraded yearly. This is good as it makes the surroundings more picturesque and the buildings more handsome. But I am afraid we seem to forget that we are building taller and more buildings, which require land to be cleared and trees — shade-giving, rain-attracting trees — are cut down because they are in the way.

I am not against this. Many environmentally-friendly countries cut down trees at a much greater rate than Singapore, but they have an active tree planting policy. We too have a tree planting policy.

But what good is planting a tree that does not give shade? In many urban and residential areas, trees are being cut down and replaced with those that do not give shade. This sends the mercury level soaring. It is really a torture stepping out of the house in the blistering heat from about noon to 6pm.

Singapore is blessed with adequate rain and sunshine all the year round, good for growing trees. Why can't we plant only trees that will lower temperatures?

Secondly, as we build more offices and homes, we should also be active in setting aside more open land.

Thirdly, we should build windmills in open areas to generate electricity. This will be a much cheaper alternative to oil-fired electricity.

Fourthly, we should tap solar energy of which we have an abundance and use it to supply electricity to homes and offices. There is still much vacant land in Singapore and we should set some aside for reforestation and windmills.

We should exhaust these natural renewable resources and make use of other simple devices that do not levy a great cost on non-renewable resources and save much foreign exchange, which can be used to lower the cost of living and doing business here.
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