In his office in the Netherlands, Professor Han Wrusten stops a hard spongy block for the show. It is a material that he produced in 2012 with the complicated rooting network of mushrooms. He has brave predictions about the potential of this witness.
“We should have the first mushroom buildings in ten years,” said West, professor of molecular biology at Utrecht University.
He does not talk about moldy walls, but about something much more exciting – more lively, more sustainable and full of potential.
Wrusten examines how different mushrooms work in a mycelium – the Internet of nature, a living network of threads that nourishes mushrooms and connects plants by passing on resources and information.
It now immerses mushrooms “threads” into sustainable, biodegradable alternatives to plastic, wood and leather – materials that already trigger new purposes in fashion, furniture and construction.
Future -safe “living” buildings
Wrusten is part of a team of researchers from Belgium, Denmark, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway and Great Britain who research a radical idea: What if the materials we build, grow, repair themselves and even feel their environment?
This research initiative called Fungateria is developed by the EU Technical Living Materials (ELMS) by decorating mushroom myzel with bacteria and creating adaptable, self -healing materials that do what conventional products cannot.
In contrast to conventional materials such as concrete or plastic, elms can grow, repair themselves, feel changes in their environment and sometimes even adapt over time.
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We should have the first mushroom buildings in ten years.
The researchers want to design these materials in such a way that they combine the strength of natural growth with the functionality of the engineering system. For example, walls that repair their own cracks, building blocks that absorb the CO2Or surfaces that can clean the air.
The aim is to create sustainable, low derogatory materials that work with nature instead of this and open the door for more intelligent, greener architecture and products.
“We can already produce leather -like materials or isolation plates from these extended mushroom networks,” said Wersten. “Now we want to go to the next level and grow buildings, but in a controlled way.”
Low waste, high efficiency
There are considerable savings. The construction sector creates more than a third of the overall waste of the EU.
The greenhouse gas emissions made of materials and manufacturing construction products as well as the construction and renovation of buildings contribute an estimated 5 to 12% of the total national emissions of the EU member states. A higher material efficiency could save 80% of these emissions.
Crucial, while the production concrete is very large amounts of CO emits2 In the atmosphere that contribute to climate change, mushroom association buildings could build up agricultural waste in building materials and at the same time reduce carbon emissions.
The idea of living organisms in buildings can unsettle some people. For Professor Phil Ayres, a pioneer in the field of Biohybrid architecture at the Royal Danish Academy for Architecture, Design and Nature Conservation in Copenhagen, this is a social adaptation that will happen over time.
“We have eaten food with living organisms for hundreds of years. In the past 20 years we have only examined the potential applications of these organisms in the building sector.”
Ayres, who coordinates the work of the Funteria research team, would like to tip over the dogma of his employees that materials can be controlled and have solid properties.
“All constructions change over time.
The researchers bridge fields from microbiology to architecture and ethics and also engage the public through exhibitions such as the Biennale and workshops in Venice, which challenge traditional ideas about what buildings can be.
Growth control
A mushroom in the forest is only the tip – underneath a massive myzel network that sometimes weighs tons.
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If we started thinking about buildings that are more like organisms in a continuous state, we could create architecture that are more ecologically connected.
For the construction, the mushroom hyphen-like filament-die-like filaments can be encouraged to feed on agricultural waste in order to form a strong, light and insulating composite material. However, control of this growth is the key to safe, durable structures.
The mushroom types used by the researchers is the Splitgill mushroom, or Schizoplllum Commune. It primarily grows on dead wood, which is a potential risk. The growth of the myzel must be stopped when the structure is completed so that it does not begin through wooden carriers.
A method uses your own signals: light and temperature can be the fungus for growing or stopping. Another bacteria concerns bacteria that are genetically constructed at the Ghent University of Ghent in Belgium.
These bacteria feed the essential nutrients of mushrooms. Therefore, killing the bacteria stops the growth of the mushroom. The same bacteria can even be programmed to release antifungals on the command and provide an additional safety layer.
Future proof
The Fungateria researchers, who will continue their cooperation by the end of 2026, have already shown that the fungus can grow and survive under stressful conditions such as drought and high temperatures. This means that it is resistant to the possible effects of changing climatic conditions.
The research team is already introducing a time in which buildings are made from wood and mushroom matter, which are grown on agricultural waste in a lively construction process.
“In the future I can imagine that we will grow complete buildings in which the wood will be the supportive structure and the fungus is growing and between the wooden frames,” said Wuter.
Since the worldwide demand for sustainable solutions is intensified, this research indicates a future in which architecture is not only inspired by nature, but is also made from it – alive, adaptive and implemented with the ecosystems.
Research in this article was financed by the European Innovation Council (EIC). The views of the respondents do not necessarily reflect that of the European Commission. If you liked this article, you should share it on social media.