Growing and testing mycelium bricks as building insulation materials

Xing, Yangang ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5374-7269, Brewer, Matthew, El-Gharabawy, Hoda, Griffith, Gareth and Jones, Phil ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1559-8984 2018. Growing and testing mycelium bricks as building insulation materials. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 121 , 022032. 10.1088/1755-1315/121/2/022032

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Abstract

In order to improve energy performance of buildings, insulation materials (such as mineral glass and rock wools, or fossil fuel-based plastic foams) are being used in increasing quantities, which may lead to potential problem with materials depletions and landfill disposal. One sustainable solution suggested is the use of bio-based, biodegradable materials. A number of attempts have been made to develop biomaterials, such as sheep wood, hemcrete or recycled papers. In this paper, a novel type of bio insulation materials – mycelium is examined. The aim is to produce mycelium materials that could be used as insulations. The bio-based material was required to have properties that matched existing alternatives, such as expanded polystyrene, in terms of physical and mechanical characteristics but with an enhanced level of biodegradability. The testing data showed mycelium bricks exhibited good thermal performance. Future work is planned to improve growing process and thermal performance of the mycelium bricks.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Architecture
Publisher:	IOP Publishing: Conference Series
ISSN:	1755-1307
Funders:	Leverhulme Trust, NRN LCEE Plants and Architecture
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	15 May 2018
Date of Acceptance:	1 January 2018
Last Modified:	02 May 2023 20:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/111460

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