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Textiles help turn mycelium into building material
November 1st, 2023
BioKnit, a prototype researchers created using mycocrete. They constructed the self-supporting dome by securing merino yarn tubes to a solid structure and then filled the tubes with mycocrete. Image: The Hub for Biotechnology in the Built Environment A team of scientists and engineers in the Living Textiles Research Group in the Hub for Biotechnology in […]
John Goodman Amphitheatre at MSU wins design award
November 1st, 2023
Missouri State Office of Visual Media The applause isn’t coming only from Missouri State University (MSU) theater patrons following performances in the university’s new alfresco space, the John Goodman Amphitheatre. This summer, design and development firm Fabritecture won the STA Special Commendation (Internationally Fabricated Projects) award for the project. Fabritecture/Gayle Babcock, Architectural Imageworks LLC For […]
Fire-resistant mycelium sheets may be used in construction
November 1st, 2023
The fungi the researchers used, in various forms, including the mycelium sheets (rectangle in upper left, circle in middle bottom and the strips next to it). The dark brown strips on the right-hand side are sheets that the researchers burned. Image: Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Researchers at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) […]
Mycelium used as leather alternative in hat collection
November 1st, 2023
From left to right: The Lingzhi is a flat-brim 100% straw hat with an Ecuadorian straw crown and a 1 1⁄2-inch Reishi™ band and bow and Reishi brim and full binding. The Ganoderma is a flat-brim hat made from 100% dress-weight felt with a 2-inch Reishi band with green edge finishing. The Mycelium is a […]
Foldable boat assembles and sails within minutes
November 1st, 2023
IZIBoat® is lightweight and compact at 480 centimeters (15.75 feet) long and 62 centimeters (2 feet) wide (when folded) and weighs 162 kilograms (357 pounds). It can be transported behind an electric bike or car and stored in a yard or garage. When unfolded, it is 240 centimeters (7.9 feet) wide. Images: IZIBoat IZIBoat®, a […]
Stretchable battery prototype may enhance wearable tech
November 1st, 2023
A bendable battery prototype being developed at the University of Houston. Images: University of Houston Researchers at the University of Houston in Texas have created a stretchable fabric-based lithium-ion battery, broadening the future of wearable technology. Currently, powering wearable technology is a challenge due to the rigidity of conventional batteries. Lithium-ion batteries also pose safety […]
Biodegradable circuit boards: Easier electronics recycling
November 1st, 2023
The plant fibers comprising the Soluboard® circuit board make recycling electronics easier. Image: Infineon Technologies AG Plants could help lower electronics waste and better recycle precious metals components thanks to the development of natural-fiber circuit boards. The Soluboard®, made of flax, jute and hemp encased in a water-soluble polymer, was created by Jiva Materials in […]
Gingerbread ingredient could recycle cotton-poly blends
November 1st, 2023
A polyester fabric dress is being cut up into small pieces and put in a container with hartshorn salt and a mild solvent. Chemists at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark have learned that an Old World leavening agent used in gingerbread can separate cotton-poly blended fibers. The baking ingredient hartshorn salt, also known as […]
Stretchy LEDs may have clothing, packaging, biomedical uses
November 1st, 2023
Junyi Zhao demonstrates using a ballpoint pen to write custom LEDs on paper (left). The same pens can be used to draw multicolored designs on aluminum foil (top right) and to create light-up sketches (bottom right). Images: Wang Lab Building on previous research that created stretchable inkjet LEDs, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis, […]
Bacterial cellulose used to make biodegradable packaging
November 1st, 2023
Two different experimental groups: Bacterial cellulose grown in the open air in a tea medium (top) and grown in an oven for seven days (bottom). After purification, the product is dried before being made into the packaging material. Images: Chinese University of Hong Kong Scientists at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have developed […]