The subject of this research is growing mycelium-based composites and exploring their basic material properties. Since the building industry is responsible for a large amount of annual CO2 emissions, rethinking building materials is an important task for future practices. Using such composites is a carbon-neutral strategy that offers alternatives to conventional building materials. Yet, in order to become competitive, their basic research is still needed. In order to create mycelium-based composites, it was necessary to establish a sterile work environment and develop shaping procedures for objects on a scale of architectural building elements. The composite material exhibited qualities that make it suitable for compression-only structures, temporary assemblies, and acoustic and thermal insulation. The methodology includes evaluating several substrates, focused on beech sawdust, with two mycelium strains (Pleurotus ostreatus and Ganoderma lucidum), density calculations, compression tests, three-point flexural tests and capillary water absorption. The results of this study are presented through graphical and numerical values comparing material and mechanical properties. This study established a database for succeeding investigations and for defining the potentials and limitations of this material. Furthermore, future applications and relevant examinations have been addressed.
In this paper we will demonstrate a digital workflow that includes a living material such as mycelium and makes the creation of structural designs possible. Our interdisciplinary research combines digital manufacturing with the use of mycelial growth, which enables fibre connections on a microscopic scale. We developed a structure that uses material informed toolpaths for paste-based extrusion, which are built on the foundation of experiments that compare material properties and growth observations. Subsequently, the tensile strength of 3D printed unfired clay elements was increased by using mycelium as an intelligently oriented fibre reinforcement. Assembling clay-mycelium composites in a living state allows force-transmitting connections within the structure. This composite has exhibited structural properties that open up the possibility of its implementation in the building industry. It allows the design and efficient manufacturing of lightweight ceramic constructions customised to this composite, which would not have been possible using conventional ceramics fabrication methods.
This research was carried out to develop a novel composite material consisting of a thread reinforcement and a clay matrix, as well as to develop a method of shaping this material into hollow spatial structures. Ceramic elements in the building industry are currently created by applying extruding, pressing and casting methods. The approach of spraying clay onto predefined knitted meshes increases the usability of digitally fabricated lightweight ceramic elements, while eliminating the need for scaffolding. In this approach, multiple layers of a fluid clay mass are sprayed onto the tensioned mesh using an industrial, six-axis robotic arm. This allows the precise application of the material and results in varying material thicknesses. Due to the complementary qualities of clay which absorbs compressive forces and threads which absorb tensile forces, lightweight structures can be created. The research involved experimenting with clay mixtures, several thread types, knitting methods and spraying techniques, as well as fabricating a 1:1 lightweight module as an architectural prototype.
The embodied carbon emissions from building materials and construction are today responsible for 38% of annual global GHG emissions in the current global environment. If we are to reach the European energy plan with net-zero emissions by 2050, now is the time to rethink our construction principles, as well as building elements and materials. One of the possible steps to achieve this goal is to explore new solutions using regional sources and sustainable raw materials. In our research, we use alginate to see if we can substitute conventional structural elements with others based on this sustainable material, whose potential in architecture is so far unrevealed. Alginate, which is found in brown algae cell walls, is an irreversibly hardening elastic moldable material, i.e. once hardened, its form can neither be changed nor converted back into an original state. In this paper, we present a series of experiments with different natural additives. By respecting the natural behaviour tendencies of macroalgae, but also by experimenting with chitosan to increase the rigidity and glycerin to increase the elasticity of the alginate, various shapes of elements are obtained, ranging from linear ones, towards membranes and shells. An initial tensile test is made for the linear elements and the results are commented in comparison to similar natural fibres. The created models demonstrate promising outcomes while also opening some new research questions, confirming the potential of this innovative application.
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