The Model Architect: Bart Prince

Innovative Materials

COCONUT-WOOD COMPOSITES

The coconut tree or palm is also known as 'The Tree of Life'. Although inappropriate, the term “coconut wood” has been established for the material of the coconut palm stem, and will therefore be used in this handbook as well. Unlike “conventional” trees, palms, like many other monocotyledons, have vascular fibre bundles (red-brown spots on a cross-section) scattered in a yellowish parenchymatic ground tissue. These bundles contain the water and nutrient transport system (xylem vessels and phloem) as well as thick-walled fibres giving the stem its strength, and paratracheal parenchymatic cells. The ground parenchyma has mainly a storage function and contains starch among other things. The anatomical features result in a rather non-homogenous distribution of physical properties both over cross-section and height, and thus in a very non-homogenous raw material. Principally, the density decreases towards the centre of the stem, and over stem height. Figure 1 gives a qualitative impression of the density distribution over the stem from five 80-year-old Philippine palms, Photo 1 shows its distribution (dark = high density) over a cross section.

In order to avoid using valuable tropical woods and thus felling rain forests, techniques have been developed in recent years to make the wood from coconut palm plantations suitable for the furniture industry and for flooring. Coconut wood has no annual rings. It is characterized by its spotted structure from which the Dutch manufacturer Kokoshout derived the name Cocodots. As the wood is significantly harder at the periphery of the trunk (outer 5 cm) than on the inside, it is primarily this wood that is used for material production. Coconut wood only shrinks and swells minimally and is harder than oak. Coconut wood composites consist of a 1218 mm thick MDF-core, to which coconut wood is applied.

See-Through, Light-Transmitting … Concrete?!

Concrete has a sometimes-bad reputation as a harsh, rigid, cold-to-the-touch and straight-edged material. Litracon is doing a great deal to change that image of concrete through a score of creative and sustainable applications for their patented light-transmitting concrete.

Filled with optical fibers that run from one end of a poured piece of concrete to the other, these prefabricated blocks and panels effectively transmit light from one side to the other. Colors and light remain remarkably consistent from end to end, but with a natural variation from the pouring process that actually softens the effects considerably.

The fibers can transmit light to over 50 feet and, as they occupy only a small percentage of the total concrete block or panel, they do not significantly effect the structural capabilities of the poured pieces.

One could imagine all kinds of artistic as well as functional applications for this new-and-improved form of concrete. Daylighting possibilities abound and all with potentially much lower heat loss and cost and with greater durability.

Perhaps best of all it puts another broad-ranging, highly versatile material choice in an architect’s or builder’s structural tool kit – what designers do with this solid-but-see-through substance ultimately will probably surprise us all.

LUMINOSO

In 2008, a light-transmitting wood composite material with a similar structure was launched under the Luminoso brand. Fiberglass mats are layered between thin wooden panels and bonded using cold PU glue. The surface is completely sealed. The choice of wood, space between layers, and strength of the luminous fabric can influence the degree of light permeability. The wood used for backlit paneling and dividers in interior spaces and trade fair stands must be absolutely flawless, so as not to disturb the overall impression. A picture that is placed behind the composite panel will be transferred to the other side once it is lit from the rear. Even films can be projected on to the material.

Freshome would like to thank Dr. Sascha Peters for introducing us to these innovative materials and for giving us a sneek peek into his book. For anyone who would like to find out more about how these and other innovative new materials are revolutionizing design and architecture, Dr. Peters’ book is available to buy here. You can also keep up to date with new developments in material innovation by reading Dr. Peters’ online magazine.

If you thought that see-through concrete was a cool material innovation, this even more refined-looking wooden counterpart may dazzle you even more. And with the core technology now fully developed, the sky is the limit – virtually any material can be made to let light pass through it.

Sandwiched between wooden slats, the vertical strips that help light move from one face to the other are visible as tall thin bars – but like vertical pixels, the effect of the composite image is readily apparent as our minds stitch the image back together. The resulting high-tech hybrid material can be deployed in everything from structural walls to horizontal surfaces or room dividers.

Similar cutting-edge, light-transmitting fiber-optics as those that allow lights and shadows to penetrate concrete (pre-cast or poured on site) are used by Luminoso to carry light from one side to the other – making considerations of density and thickness obsolete. Just imagine: a warm and dark wooden wall providing physical and psychological solidity and security – but that also lets light shine through it.

Interior Moss Tiles Help Grow the Vertical Garden Movement

Commercial and institutional applications of climbing and clinging greens have been on the rise for a while, but residential (and particularly: interior) options are still evolving, albeit at an ever-faster rate.

These MOSStiles turn inside gardens in on their side, literally and otherwise, making ‘green’ as much a texture or finish as a living material, more like wallpaper or wall art than a potted plant. The stabilized lichen lives off the moisture in the air, thus requiring little to no upkeep – pruning becomes a thing of the past and watering passe as well. Even naturally light is not necessary. Squares, rectangles, circles – or the reverse of any such geometric shape – are all possible and simple, too, with various shades of green to match any interior color scheme. So instead of a tough-to-maintain Bonzai tree on the one hand … or a set-and-forget cactus on the other … maybe tiles of moss will become the middle ground: vibrant and soft but easy to maintain, too. Want more from your moss? In theory, it can span whole surfaces, too, acting as a combination accent wall and noise dampener to help soften or nullify sound between interior spaces.

These aren't made from moss at all, but lichens - specifically reindeer moss (Cladonia rangiferina). This slow-growing lichen is harvested in Scandinavia, "stabilized" in a salt solution, glued onto tiles with a resin, then dyed one of twelve different colors.

This isn't a plant anymore. It might as well be made out of plastic. All the misting does is keeping them from drying out and crumbling to pieces.

However, reindeer moss is a major food source for caribou and other large ruminants. It's so slow growing that it's a threatened (and protected) species in some parts of the world. Do we really need to have preserved plants hanging on our walls like some kind of botanical trophy?

New Noise-Quenching Curtains Absorb Sound, Let in Light

  Somewhere between thick and opaque noise-blocking curtains and clear sound-reflecting glass windows there was a missing link, and this textile is it: lightweight and translucent, it sucks in sound without obscuring your view. Specializing in Materials Science & Technology, the EMPA worked with textiles experts, acoustical engineers and computer modelers to weave disparate disciplines into a new compelling set of acoustically-altered patterns. Passive noise cancellation is of course a particularly tricky task in malleable and thin materials due to issues of density and directionality. Mathematical projects and digital models led to real manufacturing and testing, resulting in something five times more soundproof than traditional hanging curtains (and significantly better than bare concrete or glazed surfaces) but still sufficiently fireproof and translucent to let in strands of daylight. Insert additional thread-and-weaving-related jokes here.