Dominic Michaelis

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Dominic Michaelis
Born 1938
Paris
Occupation architect, inventor, solar energy and solar balloon pioneer, engineer

Dominic Michaelis (born 1938) is an English architect and inventor.

Commemorating The first ever solar crossing by balloon of the English Channel

Biography

Born in 1938 in Paris, Michaelis studied architecture and engineering at Cambridge. His thesis, written in 1964 was about a solar house and a floating solar village. He continued at Cornell studying for an M.Sc. in architectural structures and town planning.[1]

After initial experiments, in 1972 Michaelis built the first solar balloon, a 22m diameter structure and two years later developed this into a man carrying balloon. In June 1981, to promote the International Solar Energy Society Conference in Brighton, he organised a cross channel solar flight with Julian Nott, a world record holding balloonist. In 1974 as part of the set for the film Hu-Man directed by Jerome Laperrousaz, starring Jeanne Moreau, Terence Stamp and Frederic van Pallandt, he designed a 50 meter solar inflated transparent dome which created the main Sci Fi environment required for the film.

In 1974 Michaelis opened a consultancy for solar houses and office buildings, one of which received the first joint RIBA, RICS and CIBSE award. He consulted for many known solar heated or cooled projects, being responsible for some of the early solar and low energy houses in Milton Keynes. He also built many projects abroad including neighborhoods and structures, in Pisa, Rome, Marrakech, Barbados and Mali, where he built five pise walled low cost health clinics for the EU.[2]

In 2002 he patented the 'Energy Island' concept following a Call for Ideas by the International OTEC Association, a proposal for an offshore platform that would employ various techniques to generate renewable energy.[3] His son Alex Michaelis continues his father's solar projects, and particularly the energy island idea.[4]

In 1990 Michaelis developed a low cost geodesic geometry solar cooker, which cooks at over 200°C. It also boils five litres of water in twenty minutes and can therefore sterilise 100 litres of water a day.

An idea for a wave energy converter was formulated and patented in 1980 with John Field engineer and colleague. Peter Rice a senior partner of ARUPS became interested in the project and a test was carried out at sea to validate the concept. The wave energy converter known as THE LILYPAD, is based on recovering energy from seas and oceans using flexible membranes only and is now being developed for trials in the Mediterranean.

References

  1. ↑ Full biography including image at "Dominic Michaelis full biography (BioMarine organization website)". Retrieved 2011-04-11. 
  2. ↑ A list of projects by Michaelis on Solar Energy LTD website, the company that continued Michaelis' projects. A full description of the projects can be found on Michaelis's bio page.
  3. ↑ Schirber, Michael (12 November 2008). "Could ‘energy islands’ power the future?". LiveScience. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  4. ↑ Treehugger:

External links

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