![Author ORCID: We display the ORCID iD icon alongside authors names on our website to acknowledge that the ORCiD has been authenticated when entered by the user. To view the users ORCiD record click the icon. [opens in a new tab]](https://chemrxiv.org/engage/assets/public/chemrxiv/images/logos/orcid.png)
Abstract
Conventional building materials, such as concrete, steel, and brick, are energy-intensive to produce, contribute to significant carbon emissions, and deplete finite natural resources. In response to critical environmental issues caused by these non-renewable materials, mycelium-based composites (MBCs) have attracted widespread attention. MBCs provide a renewable alternative where mycelium grows on lignocellulosic fibers forming a lightweight, low energy cost, and an effective insulating material. However, the bottleneck of large-scale architectural applications of MBCs lies in conventional mold-based manual manufacturing processes. Even though 3D-printable mycelium composites facilitate automated production and greater design freedom, the size is still limited at the centimeter scale due to the extended time required for layers to fuse from hyphal growth. The development of shootable MBCs, which can potentially overcome these constraints for flexible forms and automated large-scale construction, has not yet been explored. This study investigates biopolymer modification methods for psyllium husk gels to engineer shootable MBCs with high cohesive and adhesive properties that enable deposition on vertical surfaces. Engineered formulations demonstrated consistent shootability over a span of 50 minutes with minimal material loss (<10%), and robust mycelium growth at both the surface and throughout the cross section. The resulting composition exhibits circular building lifecycle principles as all ingredients are biodegradable and compostable at the end of building life. Additionally, a shootable composite broadens the fabrication methods and applications of MBCs, showing promise for use with shotcrete-like spraying techniques in the building industry.
Supplementary materials
Title
Supporting Information
Description
Viscosity tests of psyllium husk gels (Figure S1); specific rheology testing data (Table S1); photographs of material conditions after high-rate mixing (Figure S2); compression testing of the individual test specimens of hemp-mycelium composites with and without psyllium husk gel (Figure S3); one-way ANOVA (Analysis of Variance) results for compressive stress at a strain of 0.5, young’s modulus, and dry density of the investigated hemp-mycelium composites with and without psyllium husk gel (Table S2).
Actions
