Composite Building Structures, Ltd., in Fort Myers, Florida is working on a fiberglass composite material that can be used to build house frames and shells. Similar to materials used in military aircraft (like the Stealth bomber), it is not only light, but is reportedly able to hold up to winds far higher than those of the most powerful hurricane.
Isochanvre, a material made by a French company by crystallizing the sap of a raw, non-intoxicating form of hemp, offers promise for construction purposes. After being mixed with lime and water, it can be formed and left to dry like concrete. It is non-toxic, flame-proof, unpalatable to termites, other insects and rats, and has 1/9th the weight of concrete. It’s even supposed to get stronger as it ages and continues to mineralize or petrify in combination with the added lime. Most amazingly, it is said that it would take only four months to grow enough of it to build an average-sized house, thus making it a totally and rapidly sustainable raw material!
And at Australia’s Wollongong University’s Department of Civil and Mining Engineering, they have developed useable bricks for construction made from 70% human sewage sludge! The bricks have no odor and are said to be 20% stronger and also lighter than regular bricks, with increased porosity which makes mortar bind better to them.
(CONTINUE READING)
About Me
- Tom Owens
- I'm interested in nature, technology, and the human interface between the two. I see anthropocentrism (often combined with ethnocentrism and/or excessive religious fervor) as probably the most damaging human mindset, at least environmentally-speaking. A great goal of mine is to inspire a love of nature in people. I believe we will all benefit if everyone can create a bond with other organisms and feel the connectedness of all life on our planet. We all have to realize that humans are not separate from the rest of nature.
No comments:
Post a Comment