Future buildings could be made of artificial human bone, hemp, bacterial by-products or concrete that absorbs greenhouse gas emissions and lasts thousands of years. Innovations in building materials have led to synthetic creations that are stronger, lighter and more sustainable than those we already use, potentially leading to architecture unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
1. Animal Blood Bricks
Abundant and yet almost always wasted, animal blood is an unlikely - and grisly - possible base material for building bricks. Architectural graduate Jack Munro sterilized the blood, added sand and baked them together to yield a strong, traditional-looking brick that’s also waterproof.
2. Translucent Concrete
Litracon is a combination of optical fibres and fine concrete, produced as prefabricated building blocks for a translucent glass-like look with surprising strength. It’s hand-made, so each block has its own individual pattern of light.
3. Bacteria Building Blocks
Will bacteria build the walls of our houses in the future? Scientists have directed the creation of bio-plastics, cellulose and other materials by feeding certain materials to specific varieties of bacteria. The resulting metabolic process produces solid, surprisingly durable by-products that could be used for all kinds of processes. Bacteria might even create bricks that could be used for building on Mars.
4. Concrete That Lasts 16,000 Years
Not only would the new concrete being developed at MIT drastically reduce the carbon emissions currently associated with the manufacturing of this material, it would also result in an astonishing reduction in the amount needed in the first place. That’s because it’s strong enough to last for an incredible 16,000 years. This concrete will not only be stronger, but also lighter and thinner, so large-scale, lightweight structures require far less material.
5. Hempcrete: Hemp Biocomposite
A new bio-composite, thermal wall material made of hemp, lime and water is not only eco-friendly but actually carbon-negative thanks to the amount of CO2 stored during the process of growing and harvesting hemp. It’s 100% recyclable, waterproof and fireproof and could be used for everything from walls and insulation to flooring. Once demolished, the material can be used as fertilizer.
6. SensiTile
Sensitiles are made up of a light-conducting matrix embedded in a substrate, so that they redirect and scatter incoming light in a similar way as fibre optics. Shadow-producing movements around these tiles produce an interesting rippling effect, and the tiles absorb and ‘bleed’ colours.
7. Bendable Concrete
A new type of concrete can not only bend under 5% tensile strain, it does so by self-healing. The material forms micro-cracks when bent, which then seal themselves after being exposed to water and carbon dioxide.
8. Water-Saving Bricks
What looks like an ordinary red brick on one side contains a waterway that can route water down the side of a building and into a basin for bathrooms, fountains, cleaning, fire fighting or irrigation. The ‘Save Water’ brick is made of pulverized fallen leaves and reclaimed plastic.
9. Aerogel
So light you can’t even feel it in your hand, aerogel has the lowest bulk density of any known porous solid, and it’s a powerful insulating material. Made up of a gel that has had its liquid component replaced by air, it’s thin, breathable, fireproof, strong and won’t absorb water. Manufacturers are now producing it in sheets as insulation, but it’s still pretty expensive.
10. Electrified Wood
A composite material made of pre-formed wooden elements and metal layers actually enables lamps and other electronics to be plugged directly into the wood without any cables. Developed by trans|alpin, the electrified wood material could revolutionize furniture.
11. Liquid Granite
Safer at high temperatures than concrete, but just as versatile, ‘liquid granite’ is made of 30-70% recycled material and uses less than a third of the cement used in precast concrete. It could be used in building projects that require the top level of protection against fire.
12. Novacem Carbon-Eating Cement
2.9 billion tons of cement is produced every year, and it’s responsible for up to 5% of the world’s annual production of CO2. Novacem, a cement substitute made of magnesium silicate, actually absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere. It could potentially achieve one of the single largest reductions in CO2 emissions in construction, cutting out 800kg of carbon emissions per ton of poured concrete and absorbing another 50kg.
13. Flexicomb
Made from drinking straws, a disposable product, ‘flexicomb‘ is a flexible material that form a translucent honeycomb matrix that could potentially be used to make lighting fixtures and other items.
14. Kinetic Glass
A new material called ‘living glass’ could monitor CO2 levels in the air, automatically opening and closing its ‘gills’ in response to the breathing of humans in the room. It’s made of silicone embedded with wires that contract due to electrical stimulus, allowing the gills to regulate air quality when carbon dioxide levels are high.
15. Zeoform: Recyclable, Low-Carbon
Using nothing more than cellulose and water, this hardwood-like material is an eco-friendly alternative to plastics and resins. Zeoform is made using a natural glue-free process whereby cellulose fibres stick together in water, and can be sprayed, moulded or shaped into a wide range of objects.
16. Artificial Bone
Human bone is the inspiration behind a new high-tech composite that can be made in just a few hours using a 3D printer. Just as collagen and hydroxyapatite help a natural bone withstand fracturing by dissipating energy and distributing damage over a larger area, so do a soft black polymer and a stiff blue polymer acting like a brick-and-mortar wall. The 3D printed bone material is 22 times more fracture-resistant than any of its parts, and one day, it could be used as the basis of entire buildings.
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