ZEMCH 2015 - International Conference Proceedings | Page 627

main goal behind this process is to achieve the most effective sustainable results. For this report the ideas and strategies are derived from the Tridacna Gigas life and are applied in Al Manahil cafe restaurant, located in Dubai. The main purpose for the Tridacna Gigas strategies was to achieve the thermal comfort in an existing building (cafe restaurant). Methodology The research data was collected through an extensive literature review using various journals, online articles, and existing case studies. Numerical statistics and graphs were used to support the reports on final results. All the data used are examined by scientists and doctors from various fields, and reported by journalists, APTMA association and environmental performance index. The final results were achieved by the use of Autodesk Ecotect Analysis software. Natural Concept Tridacna Clam Tridacna clam is the largest living bivalve mollusk, is very famous for its features, functions and environmental behavior. Each feature in this clam body has a huge function. According to Cohen (2014), “M[m]imicking the micron-scale structures within the clam’s iridocytes and algal pillars could lead to new approaches for boosting the efficiency of photovoltaic cells without having to precisely engineer structures on the nanoscale”. Habitat Giant clams occupy coral reef habitats, typically within 20 meters of the surface. This clam is found in shallow lagoons and reef flats. According to Taxonomy (2013), the giant clam feeds through two ways (i) by filtering water through the incurrent siphon and (ii) by creating symbiotic relationship with the zooxanthellae algae for the source of food and energy. Geographic Range Tridacna Gigas are found throughout the Tropical Indo-Pacific oceanic region Nicobar Islands, Fiji, China seas and the Australian northern coasts. Clam’s Anatomy The Tridacna Gigas clam consis ts of visible and invisible body part. When the clam shell opens, only the mantle, the shell and the siphons can be viewed. The rest of the body parts are not exposed and cannot be viewed. Big Tridacna Gigas cannot close their shell completely; the mantle tissue is always exposed. The mantle is brownish-yellow in color. The diagram below shows the clam’s invisible body parts. Visible Body Parts Clam Shell: Under the observable body parts we see clam shell and the mantle tissue. The Tridacna clam consist of two shells, thick and heavy located on the left and on the right side of the clam, these shells are joined together by a small hinge positioned in the center of the animal’s upper surface (Shimek 2001). The two valves are partially covered by four to five large inward facing triangular ribs and outward projected folds. Between these two shells, a tissue can be seen with the structure called the mantle (Taxonomy 2013). Thermal comfort through biomimicry in the case of Emirates Towers Metro Station in Dubai 625