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Angled adaptation

Hemispherical solar cells catch the light at multiple angles to generate power. Similarly, a Swiss startup is taking the sun’s position as its starting point, and its system comprises movable solar modules. They are attached to buildings by a framework, and angled by individual engines towards the sun. Installed outside windows, the modules provide shade and produce electricity at...

Flexible future

Pick up or convertible? An electric vehicle concept gives consumers the opportunity to change. Not so easy with a house or a flat design, though. At least, until now. Thanks to a Cambridge-based research team, residents could soon alter the layout of their houses to meet their changing needs. No need to knock through interior walls when they are...

Variety blossoms

Sawdust makes for stylish furniture, while flags embedded with seeds have a blossoming afterlife. Now, a research team from the University of Virginia is creating building elements from soil impregnated with stonecrop seeds. The 3D printed, one-metre high walls are soon ablaze with lush green. These reusable structures are not only low in emissions but also store CO2, while...

Incremental development

New beaches are being made from old glass bottles, while egg shells morph into tiles for home. Now an LA startup is using recycled plastic to create houses with up to 80㎡ of living space. Polymers, 60% of which come from plastic bottles and food packaging, are processed to form a mass which is 3D-printed into a simple shape....

Beneficial cover

Cocoa plants aren’t just used to make chocolate and buildings become more flexible. Now, an international research team has developed a design concept from which humans, animals, plants and organisms such as microbes could all benefit. The idea is to cover houses in several layers. Each of them is tailored to the needs of the organisms within. Humans, for...

Long-lasting bonds

Flexible building design is good for the environment. Traditional cement production is not as it's responsible for 8% of global CO2 emissions. A statistic that an American startup is striving to change. Inspired by marine ecosystems, the female founder experimented with bacteria that produce calcium carbonate. One of the company’s first products are stone tiles, manufactured in a patented process...

Traditional future

Peanut shells are good for plants. Leftovers from chocolate production can be useful too. With its design for a smart village, an Australian company wants to provide businesses from the cocoa sector with a creative environment. The goal is to drive innovation for the circular economy and reduce the industry’s carbon footprint. The proposed Ecuadorian village is inspired by...

Hard alternative

Metal isn’t always needed to make knives. Sustainable pallets can be made from tropical materials. Students from Karnataka in India are hoping to substitute steel in house constructions after integrating a bamboo net into a spherical stone shell. They discovered that this material can be used to make lightweight slabs that can nevertheless carry weights of up to 700...

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