Tag Archives: cement

Bio-Cement: A Potential Material That May Replace Regular Cement

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Industrial designer Mary Lempres has unveiled a groundbreaking bio-cement structure named Reef Rocket, inspired by the intricate and resilient nature of oyster reefs. Designed to combat coastal flooding, filter seawater, and foster biodiversity, Reef Rocket utilizes biomimicry principles to mimic the functionalities of naturally occurring oyster reefs.

Designers: Mary Lempres, Ahmed Miftah

The structure comprises two bio-cement modules with ridged surfaces that can be stacked to form a distinctive rocket-like shape when assembled underwater. Lempres collaborated with bio-geotechnical specialist Ahmed Miftah to develop a unique method for growing plant-derived cement, drawing parallels to the irrigation systems used for plant cultivation.

Biomimicry, the practice of seeking solutions to human design challenges in nature, guided Lempres in creating ridged modules that emulate coastal oyster reefs. These reefs naturally filter algae from seawater, attract aquatic organisms, dissipate wave energy, mitigate storm surges, and manage eroding coastlines.

The bio-cement modules are formed by pouring a non-toxic solution containing a crude extract from globally grown plants over crushed aggregate. The aggregate, sourced in New York City, consists of crushed glass and oyster shells recovered from local restaurants and New York Harbour.

Lempres explained that the substrate, saturated for three to nine days, becomes natural concrete as the extracted biocatalyst causes minerals to form “mineral bridges” between the glass and shell waste. The resulting product is water-resistant, durable, and comparable to standard concrete but with the added benefit of being environmentally friendly and sustainable.

What sets Reef Rocket apart is its ability to grow in any environment without the need for heat or burning fossil fuels. Lempres emphasized its affordability and scalability as a sustainable alternative to traditional cement. The bio-concrete shares chemical similarities with the material oysters use to grow their reefs, but the key difference lies in the speed of growth, with Reef Rocket taking only several days compared to millennia for natural oyster reefs.

Lempres and her team experimented with “hundreds” of prototypes before settling on prefabricated molds for the modules. These molds allow the bio-cement to be packed and set without the need for heat or chemicals, offering an accessible and efficient assembly process.

Reef Rocket’s deliberate design prioritizes small size, lightweight construction, and ease of assembly, aiming to make the innovative solution accessible to a broad audience. Lempres envisions a future where durable materials can be grown like crops, regenerating waste and mitigating environmental pollution. The project stands as a testament to the potential of biomimicry and sustainable design in addressing the challenges posed by climate change and coastal resilience. Reef Rocket represents a significant step towards harmonizing human infrastructure with the resilient and regenerative capacities of the natural world.

The post Bio-Cement: A Potential Material That May Replace Regular Cement first appeared on Yanko Design.

3D-printed concrete chair uses generative design for strength and a distinct hollow aesthetic

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If the CHAIR N°ONE looks like a 3D wireframe come to life, it’s absolutely intentional. Designed by Martin Oberhauser of Studio Oberhauser, the CHAIR N°ONE is the first series of design chairs 3D printed in concrete by selective cement activation. The process involves selectively binding pieces of cement similar to the kind seen in resin 3D printing. The result is a spectacular chair that’s entirely hollow yet structurally sound. Made sustainably using recycled glass as a base material along with concrete, the CHAIR N°ONE has an appeal so unique, it transforms concrete from being a utilitarian material to one with immense sculptural and aesthetic potential.

Designer: Studio Oberhauser

The hollow, almost organic design of the CHAIR N°ONE can be attributed to its use of parametric design to achieve a form that’s equal parts durable and lightweight. Inspired by “intricate bionic structures”, the chair has an almost coral-like beauty to it, featuring a perforated exterior and a hollow interior. The chair’s form, however, remains blob-like and contours wonderfully to the human body. You’ve got a comfortable backrest as well as two armrests, almost like a hard, rigid beanbag.

The way selective cement activation works is very similar to other forms of 3D printing. Fine layers of a dry cement-sand mixture are solidified locally by applying water. This way, layer by layer, complex 3D objects can be created with a high degree of geometric freedom. The CHAIR N°ONE also uses crushed, recycled glass as a base material, providing an element of sustainability to the chair’s overall design. “The cement printing compounds can be chosen based on indoor or outdoor use of the CHAIR N°ONE, making the chair a universally usable piece of artistic design furniture”, says Martin Oberhauser.

The CHAIR N°ONE is a winner of the Red Dot Best Of Best Award for the year 2022.

The post 3D-printed concrete chair uses generative design for strength and a distinct hollow aesthetic first appeared on Yanko Design.

This sustainable home made from “air concrete” is fireproof, waterproof & DIY-friendly!

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If you don’t know, concrete is really bad for the planet – it is responsible for 8% of the global carbon emissions! In the quest to find the perfect substitute many alternatives like foamcrete, papercrete, and hempcrete were created. Now we’ve got aircrete – a foamy mixture of air bubbles and cement which is cost-effective to produce, DIY-friendly, and has the essential safeguarding properties needed for construction.

Hajjar Gibran had the idea to create AirCrete homes and DomeGaia brought it to life. The aircrete mixture is a lightweight and low-cost building block that is fireproof, water-resistant, insect-proof, and serves to insulate the structure. AirCrete reduces construction costs by 10 times and is an easy material to work with for single-story homes. It dries overnight and can be shaped into any desired form – so what do you want your home to look like? A mini castle? Spongebob’s Pineapple? Anything is possible!

The dome structure is actually very energy efficient because it encloses the home with minimal material and keeps it warm, unlike traditional homes where 40% of the energy loss happens around the thermal bridges where studs, floors, and roof meet the exterior walls. It is also the strongest structural shape to safeguard against natural disasters, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, floods, and volcanic eruptions.

The major key to DomeGaia’s AirCrete is the foaming agent that works by suspending tiny air bubbles in the cement mixture. A continuous foam generator disperses a mix of the foaming agent (like all-natural “high foaming” dish detergent) into the cement mixture and continues to mix it. It eliminates the need for aggregates, gravel, sand, or rock which are costly, take up space on-site, require heavy equipment to deliver, and hard labor to work with. It is wonderful to know we have so many ecological building alternatives to concrete that are durable, moldable, safe, climate-friendly, scalable, and sustainable!

Designer: DomeGaia

Fun fact, AirCrete is also waterproof enough for you to build a boat with because it will not rot, rust, or decompose!

Due to the seamless integration of floor, walls, and roof, Aircrete homes eliminate outside air penetration which allows the natural flow of interior convection currents that make it easier to heat and cool.

“Perhaps the most obvious reason to build with AirCrete is the enormous amount of money it will save you in construction, maintenance, keeping you cool during the summer and warm in the winter. Millions of tiny closed air cells give AirCrete its insulating properties. And you can form it to any thickness to suit your climate,” says the team.

Just one liter of dish detergent with 10 gallons of water makes enough foam to produce about 2 cubic meters or 70 cubic feet of AirCrete. The foam expands the volume of cement by a factor of 5 – 7.

Just use the standard wood-working tools to carve or drill into the material, inserting screws and nails where necessary.

This material also keeps the homes free from insects and rodents. These creatures hide in all kinds of cracks and when homes age they become more vulnerable to pests. You often resolve to treat the problem with chemicals and it becomes an endless cycle.

Natural materials like limestone in aircrete also help to keep the ailments caused by the off-gassing of modern construction materials.

DomeGaia not only designs, hosts workshops on building Aircrete homes but also sells a readymade foam generator unit called the Little Dragon along with their Foam-Injection AirCrete Mixer for those who want to take on a big project on their own from scratch.

LEGO-inspired concrete organizer is modular, holds your belongings, and even docks your phone!

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This bauble-box is brutalist beauty at its best! The Mesh, by Mexico-based Shift is a concrete organizer that allows you to store all your small belongings and customize how you store them too! Designed to work well in any space, the Mesh can be placed on your work-desk, bedside table, mantelpiece, dressing table, or even your bathroom. The concrete setup comes with a toothed base, and containers with notches that dock right into the grooves/teeth. The layout opportunities are endless, and you can even use the grooved base to route cables, rest stationery, and even dock your phone! The concrete components cone in a variety of monochrome hues, and blend into the decor well, whether it’s your desktop, dressing table, or the shelf right beside your main door. The fact that the containers (and base) are slip-cast in porous concrete means the Mesh doesn’t mind a little bit of water, making it ideal for the bathroom, or even to plant tiny succulents around your workspace! Whether it’s your tech, stationery, accessories, EDC, keys, plants, or even toiletries, the Mesh does a pretty remarkable job of storing your stash and allowing you to arrange them exactly the way you like. Plus, the modular nature of the Mesh means you could easily expand your storage by purchasing additional units!

Designer: Shift

Watch the OnePlus 7 Pro’s pop-up camera lift 49 pounds of cement

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If you can get your hands on the OnePlus 7 Pro -- one of two flagship phones released today -- one of the first things you'll notice is that it's done away with the front-facing notch camera. Instead, OnePlus opted for a pop-up camera. And to prove j...