Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Opens Chu Hall

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory opened the $59 million Chu Hall in September of 2015. Designed by SmithGroupJJR of San Francisco, the three-story, 39,000-sf facility will support research on electrochemical and photovoltaic solar energy technologies. Chu Hall houses the administrative offices of the Kavli Energy NanoSciences Institute as well as the northern branch of the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis, a laboratory created in partnership with the California Institute of Technology and funded by the Department of Energy. Research Facilities Design (RFD) provided laboratory programming and design services for the project, which features reconfigurable, team-based research space with vibration-mitigated suites for sensitive instrumentation. Ground was broken on the project in October of 2012. LEED Gold sustainable design certification will be sought for the facility, which features runaround heat recovery, high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, LED lighting, and a green roof. Originally called the Solar Energy Research Center, Chu Hall was named in honor of Steven Chu, the former Secretary of Energy and a previous director of LBNL.