Fireless Skin: Mycelium Biocomposites

Background: This project is part of body of research produced for Sustainability Victoria examining ways in which Glass Fines can be reused, recycled or upcycled. Glass Fines are the end of the glass recycling system. They are either too small, too contaminated or too mixed up for further processing back into new glass. The RMIT team consisted of staff from AeroSpace Engineering specialising in Advanced Composite Structures and School of Design Industrial Design staff specialising in Sustainable Design and Prototyping. This particular work also furthers the published research collaborations of Judith Glover and Mehrnoush Latifi developing environmentally performative building skins enabling better thermal performance or creating micro-climates across the surface of buildings. Contribution: In the initial research and scoping phase (published in the Glass Fines commissioned report) the Engineering team developed a process growing Mycelium (a fungus) around the glass fines into moulds. Further testing revealed that the composite was inflammable and could be suited to insulation and fire retardant applications. The Design team developed these findings into an example of how this insulation material could be applied as a building product that had both highly valued aesthetic qualities and high insulation and fire retardant qualities. The resulting wall system made from interlocking terracotta tiles produced through a slip casting process results in internal cavities in which the mycelium and glass fines insulation material is placed. Significance: This work was shown as an NGV offering at Melbourne Design Week in an exhibition called Life and Death. The curated show contributed a range of speculative ideas and technologies around circular economy and sustainability themes. It was reviewed as part of Design Week for the Melbourne Age and Financial Review and promoted by the NGV as a Program Highlight.