The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Decathlon is a collegiate competition, comprising 10 contests, that challenges student teams to design and build highly efficient and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy. The winners will be those teams that best blend design architectural and engineering excellence with innovation, market potential, building efficiency, and smart energy production. In the summer of 2018, DOE merged its two student building design competitions into one Solar Decathlon competition. The combined competition features two tracks, the Design Challenge and the Build Challenge. The Solar Decathlon provides a hands-on experience and unique training that prepares the competing students to enter the clean energy workforce. This international competition has been a driving force in raising awareness about clean energy since its inception in 2002. Technologies and solutions used in Solar Decathlon homes have advanced the residential building industry both in the United States and abroad. After the first Solar Decathlon was held in 2002, the competition occurred biennially in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017. The Solar Decathlon 2017 was located in Denver, Colorado, adjacent to the 61st & Peña station on the University of Colorado A line commuter train connecting Denver International Airport to downtown Union Station. In addition to the competition, Solar Decathlon 2017 also featured a sustainability expo, professional development and consumer workshops, and middle-school education events. Open to the public and free of charge, the Solar Decathlon allows visitors to tour energy- and water-efficient houses, and gather ideas to save energy and conserve water in their own homes. The Solar Decathlon 2017 competition was presented by DOE and administered by Energetics, Incorporated, a subsidiary of

VSE Corporation VSE Corporation () is a diversified products and services company providing repair services, distribution, logistics, supply chain management support and consulting services for land, sea, and air transportation assets in the public and private ...

. Previous competitions were administered by the

National Renewable Energy Laboratory The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the US specializes in the research and development of renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy systems integration, and sustainable transportation. NREL is a federally funded research an ...

(NREL). Since the first competition in 2002, the Solar Decathlon has expanded internationally to include competitions in Europe, China, Latin America and Caribbean, the Middle East, and Africa. Solar Decathlon Europe was established under a 2007 memorandum of understanding between the United States and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, which hosted competitions in 2010 and 2012.

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

hosted in 2014. The Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 was hosted by Hungary in

Szentendre Szentendre () is a riverside town in Pest County, Hungary, between the capital city Budapest and Pilis- Visegrád Mountains. The town is known for its museums (most notably the Open-Air Ethnographic Museum), galleries, and artists. Due to its ...

. The next Solar Decathlon Europe was planned for 2021, in

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "''Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and tow ...

, Germany and postponed to 2022 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. The Solar Decathlon China was established with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between DOE, China’s National Energy Administration,

Peking University Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charte ...

and Applied Materials on January 20, 2011. The first Solar Decathlon China took place in August 2013 in the city of Datong. The next Solar Decathlon China will take place in 2018 and was formed through a memorandum of understanding among the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United States ...

, the People’s Republic of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

, and the China Overseas Development Corporation. Solar Decathlon Latin America and Caribbean was established under a memorandum of understanding between the

and the government of

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...

in 2014. The first competition was held in

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the second ...

in December 2015, and another competition is planned for 2019. Solar Decathlon Middle East, to be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in 2018, was formed by a memorandum of understanding between DOE and the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority in 2015. An additional Solar Decathlon Middle East is also expected to take place in 2020. On November 15, 2016, the Moroccan Ministry of Energy, Mines, Water, and the Environment (MEMEE); the Moroccan Research Institute in Solar Energy and New Energies (IRESEN); and DOE signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the development of Solar Decathlon Africa. The competition is planned for 2019.

History

The inaugural Solar Decathlon was open to the public between September 19 and October 6, 2002. Fourteen teams from across the United States, including

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, presented their projects on the

National Mall The National Mall is a landscaped park near the downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institution, art galleries, cultural institutions, and va ...

in Washington, D.C. The

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...

was awarded first place. At the second Solar Decathlon, likewise held on the National Mall on October 6–16, 2005, 18 teams from the United States, Canada, and Spain participated; the University of Colorado successfully defended its championship. The third Solar Decathlon took place on the National Mall on October 12–20, 2007. Twenty teams from the United States, Canada, Spain, and Germany competed, and

Technische Universität Darmstadt The Technische Universität Darmstadt (official English name Technical University of Darmstadt, sometimes also referred to as Darmstadt University of Technology), commonly known as TU Darmstadt, is a research university in the city of Darmstadt ...

(Team Germany) was named the overall champion. The fourth Solar Decathlon was held on the National Mall on October 8–18, 2009, and included teams from the United States, Canada, Germany, and Spain; Team Germany was named the winner for a second time. The fifth Solar Decathlon took place between September 23 and October 2, 2011, with nineteen participating teams representing the United States, China, New Zealand, Belgium, and Canada. The event was held in Washington D.C.'s West Potomac Park, near the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augu ...

, the Tidal Basin and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, along a road between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. The

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of ...

was the overall competition winner. The sixth Solar Decathlon took place on October 3–13, 2013, in Orange County Great Park in

Irvine, California Irvine () is a master-planned city in South Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the 1960s and the city was formally incorporated on December 28, 197 ...

– it was the first Solar Decathlon to take place outside Washington D.C., and was won by Vienna University of Technology (Team Austria). The seventh Solar Decathlon was held October 8 – 18, 2015, also at the Orange County Great Park. Stevens Institute of Technology was the overall winner. This was their third Solar Decathlon competition. The eighth Solar Decathlon in the U.S. was held October 5–15, 2017, in Denver, Colorado, at the 61st & Peña Station on the University of Colorado A line commuter rail connecting Denver International Airport to downtown Union Station. Eleven teams competed to design, build, and operate the most cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive solar-powered house. The Swiss Team won the overall competition with their entry, NeighborHub. It was the first entry for this combined team of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, School of Engineering and Architecture Fribourg, Geneva University of Art and Design, and the University of Fribourg.

Awards

In 2010, the

National Building Museum The National Building Museum is located at 401 F Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is a museum of "architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning". It was created by an act of Congress in 1980, and is a private non-profit i ...

awarded the Solar Decathlon an

Honor Award The National Building Museum promotes excellence in architecture, engineering, construction, planning, and design. In furtherance of that mission, the Museum instituted an annual Honor Award in 1986 to recognize individuals and organizations that ...

for its emphasis on "renewable energy, energy-efficient, and environmentally responsible systems" and its role in "educating a new generation of built-environment professionals".

Scope of contests

Like the Olympic decathlon, the DOE Solar Decathlon consists of 10 contests. The contests evaluate cost-effective design; innovation balanced with market potential; water and energy efficiency; energy production and time-of-use energy; and communications strategies. Each Solar Decathlon contest is worth a maximum of 100 points, for a potential competition total of 1,000 points. Teams earn points through task completion, performance monitoring, and jury evaluation. The contests may change after each competition in response to participant feedback, market dynamics, and DOE goals. The contests for the 2019-2020 event: * Energy Performance * Engineering * Financial Feasibility and Affordability * Resilience * Architecture * Operations * Market Potential * Comfort and Environmental Quality * Innovation * Presentation

Competitors

2017

The project NeighborHub by the Swiss team won the overall competition. Teams selected for the Solar Decathlon 2017 competition held in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

:
Georgia Tech

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part ...

(Atlanta, GA) The Georgia Tech team withdrew from the competition on November 22, 2016.
Las Vegas

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...

(Las Vegas, NV)
Maryland

(College Park, MD)
Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology Missouri University of Science and Technology, or Missouri S&T, is a public research university in Rolla, Missouri. It is a member institution of the University of Missouri System. Most of its 7,645 students (fall 2020) study engineering, busi ...

(Rolla, MO)
Netherlands
HU University of Applied Science Utrecht (Utrecht, Netherlands)
Northwestern

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

(Evanston, IL)
Swiss Team

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

, School of Engineering and Architecture Fribourg, University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Geneva, and the

University of Fribourg The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a public university located in Fribourg, Switzerland. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisi ...

(Lausanne, Switzerland and Fribourg, Switzerland)
Team Alabama

University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a public research university in Birmingham, Alabama. Developed from an academic extension center established in 1936, the institution became a four-year campus in 1966 and a fully autonomous univ ...

;

University of Alabama, Huntsville The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is a public research university in Huntsville, Alabama. The university is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and comprises nine colleges: arts, humanities & social science ...

; and

Calhoun Community College Calhoun Community College is a public community college in Tanner, Alabama. It is the 2nd largest of the 24 two-year institutions that make up the Alabama Community College System. History The college was founded in 1946 and named after John ...

(Birmingham, AL, Huntsville, AL and Tanner, AL)
Team Daytona Beach
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and

Daytona State College Daytona State College (DSC) is a public college with its main campus in Daytona Beach, Florida. DSC also has 6 smaller regional campuses throughout Volusia and Flagler counties. It is part of the Florida College System. The college offers mo ...

(Daytona Beach, FL)
UC Berkeley

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of Californi ...

(Berkeley, CA)
UC Davis

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The inst ...

(Davis, CA)
WashU
Washington University in St. Louis (St. Louis, MO)
Washington State

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant uni ...

(Pullman, WA) The Washington State team withdrew from the competition in September 2017, just before the time to transport the house to the competition.
West Virginia

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State Coll ...

(Morgantown, WV) The West Virginia University team withdrew from Solar Decathlon 2017 in April 2017, after completing many rigorous competition deliverables, including construction drawings.

2015

Teams selected for the Solar Decathlon 2015 competition held at Orange County Great Park in

:
California Polytechnic State University
(San Luis Obispo, CA) Missouri S&T house

California State University
Sacramento (Sacramento, CA)

(Clemson, SC)
Crowder College (Neosho, MO) and Drury University
(Springfield, MO)

(Rolla, MO)
New York City College of Technology
(New York, NY)

(Alfred, NY) * ttp://surehouse.org/ Stevens Institute of Technology(Hoboken, NJ) ''winner 2015''
University of Florida, National University of Singapore, and Santa Fe College

The University of Texas at Austin and Technische Universitaet Muenchen

University at Buffalo
The State University of New York
University of California
Davis
University of California, Irvine; Chapman University; Irvine Valley College and Saddleback College

West Virginia University and University of Roma Tor Vergata

2013

Teams selected for the Solar Decathlon 2013 competition in Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California, the first one to be held outside of

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morg ...

,: *

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

and The

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

(Tempe, Arizona, and Albuquerque, New Mexico) *

Czech Technical University Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU, cs, České vysoké učení technické v Praze, ČVUT) is one of the largest universities in the Czech Republic with 8 faculties, and is one of the oldest institutes of technology in Central Europe. I ...

(Prague, Czech Republic) *

Hampton University Hampton University is a private, historically black, research university in Hampton, Virginia. Founded in 1868 as Hampton Agricultural and Industrial School, it was established by Black and White leaders of the American Missionary Association a ...

and

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...

(Hampton and Norfolk, Virginia) *

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all 5 ...

(Middlebury, Vermont) *

(Rolla, Missouri) *

Norwich University Norwich University – The Military College of Vermont is a private senior military college in Northfield, Vermont. It is the oldest private and senior military college in the United States and offers bachelor's and master's degrees on-campu ...

(Northfield, Vermont) * Queen's University,

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning Wo ...

, and

Algonquin College Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology is a publicly funded English-language college located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The college serves the National Capital Region and the outlying areas of Eastern Ontario, Western Quebec, and Upst ...

(Kingston and Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) *

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

(Santa Clara, California) *

Southern California Institute of Architecture Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) is a private architecture school in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1972, SCI-Arc was initially regarded as both institutionally and artistically avant-garde and more adventurous than t ...

and

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...

(Los Angeles, California) *

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

(Palo Alto, California) *

Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely dedicated to mechanical ...

(Hoboken, New Jersey) *

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S. ...

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

, and

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was cha ...

(Washington, DC) *

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte or simply Charlotte) is a public research university in Charlotte, North Carolina. UNC Charlotte offers 24 doctoral, 66 master's, and 79 bachelor's degree programs through nine colle ...

(Charlotte, North Carolina) * The University of Texas at El Paso and

El Paso Community College El Paso Community College (EPCC) is a community college district headquartered in El Paso, Texas, United States. EPCC operates five campuses in the Greater El Paso area, as well as courses offered at nearby Fort Bliss. As defined by the Texas ...

(El Paso, Texas) *

University of Calgary The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...

(Calgary, Alberta, Canada) *

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one ...

Ball State University Ball State University (Ball State, State or BSU) is a public university, public research university in Muncie, Indiana. It has two satellite facilities in Fishers, Indiana, Fishers and Indianapolis. On July 25, 1917, the Ball brothers, indust ...

and

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

(Louisville, Kentucky; Muncie, Indiana; and Lexington, Kentucky) * University of Nevada Las Vegas (Las Vegas, Nevada) *

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

(Los Angeles, California) * Vienna University of Technology (Vienna, Austria) ''winner 2013'' *

(Morgantown, West Virginia)

2011

Teams selected for the Solar Decathlon 2011 competition: *Appalachian State University
team page
*Florida International University
team page
*Middlebury College

) *New Zealand:

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well kn ...

team page
*The Ohio State University

*

Parsons The New School for Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manha ...

, Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy, and

History

Awards

Scope of contests

Competitors

2017

2015

2013

2011

2009

2007

2005

2002

See also

References

External links