In this post:
- #1: Mycelium Biking (2016)
- #2: Another Bike Helmet Design
- #3: Boudewijn Buitenhek’s – Mycelium R&D project
- #4: 3D-printed mushroom roots “could be used to build houses”
- the materials you need to grow-it-yourself.
- For Far East/Asia users………………..
- you might want to check out:
- All my Mycelium posts
- List of suppliers of MycoComposite material
Further ideas for Mycelium in industry.
4 Mycelium projects #1: Mycelium Biking (2016)
Mr. Alexander Wagner was a student at Luleå University of Technology, in Sweden. He produced a Thesis project developing “The Livelo (electric) Cargo Bike”. His thesis is a step by step story of all the details involved in his project. It clearly shows what could be involved for anyone who wants to try such a product development with Mycelium.
Of course, depending upon your project, the work could be more or less detailed. He also points out with clear focus what successes and problems he had along the way.
Mr. Wagner’s thesis is thorough and helpful information for anyone who wants to try a “Grow-It-Yourself” Mycelium R&D project.
His biggest concerns were – shrinkage, coating & quality. But when a business works on a specific product project, over the period of Research&Development (R&D), the requirements would correct – shrinkage, coating & quality. And some of these issues have already been solved in other projects.
The thesis:
http://www.diva-portal.se/smash/get/diva2:1024803/FULLTEXT02.pdf
6.4.1 Fungi species and biomass.
As Jameson et al. (2014) writes in his material study about mycelium, additional studies about the use of different fungi species in creating mycelium material is needed. Research comparing the most commonly used fungi in regard to growth time, performance and manufacturability. Since different fungi grow on different organic compounds (Stamets, 2005) ** different biomass should have been tested in this study as well. Categorization of different species and their properties would make it easier to design the mycelium material for the specific product.
6.4.2 Integrated functionality
Fungus has the ability to break down hazardous chemicals (Stamets, 2005), a function that could be integrated into the manufacturing as waste management. Future research could also investigate the use of waste material, for example non-biodegradable plastic could be used to enhance the material properties of the mycelium material.
and
8.1.3 How may mycelium material
be implemented in industrial manufacturing process?
Based on the findings in this study and through analysis of the current research status it is considered somewhat difficult to manufacture the material yourself. By working together with experienced manufacturers like Ecovative, industrial designers may construct the material properties to match the specific problem. Evocative´s commercialization of their product also proves that the material can be used for large scale manufacturing. The manufacturing process is simple and does not require advanced hardware (Ecovative GIY, 2014). Tools and equipment need to be sterile, but the product may be produced anywhere on the globe.
8.1.5 What parts could be replaced or added to cargo bikes using mycelium materials?
The material is not assumed strong enough to replace any structural elements without strengthening. By growing the material between veneers, the material can be used as a load bearing sandwich structure in, for example, the cargo bay. Its protective properties make it suitable for use as impact protection purposes like, bumper or helmet. Its insulating properties can be used to keep safe and isolate the battery to prevent energy diffusion and theft. The material can also be used in encapsulation purposes on products with low tolerances.
for future project support
Mr. Wagner’s thesis helps show where to look for the successes and problems in mycelium products. It helps lead future designers and businesses in the right direction. He also makes many references to the information he used in his project. For example:
Methodology
The project process was based on the IDEO field guide for human centered design. It proved applicable, though most of the information gathering focused on developing the material in a scientific way, rather than focusing on the users. (IDEO, in developed the Circular Design Guide with EMF.
4 Mycelium projects #2: Another Bike Helmet Design
Philippe Videau was in his final year as an aerospace engineering student at UCLA. An internship at Autodesk, a software company, gave him a chance to join three interns to work on a bike helmet. A helmet that might even fit into a smaller bag, taking up a fraction of the usual required space. The key word? Mushroom.
The team used mycelium. This molding material would allow the helmet to mold to a size of the rider’s head. It would also be foldable. “You get a kit made of mushroom mycelim which forms a foam-like material. The last step is to cure it in an oven to stop it from growing,” he says.
4 Mycelium projects #3: Boudewijn Buitenhek’s – Mycelium R&D project
Boudewijn Buitenhek, “I’m a student of industrial product design at The Hague University. I wanted to see if I could make a product that was in total balance with nature. And it would be without any negative impact on the environment.”
Of course this product is far from the safety ratings required for a road safe helmet. But the design is a showcase of what might be possible in the future. There is a lot to improve but for a first experimental test I’m very happy with it.
4 Mycelium projects #4: 3D-printed mushroom roots “could be used to build houses”
“We adapted the 3D-printer and invented a way to print straw injected with mycelium. By infusing this mushroom it acts as a kind of glue so that all these straw parts [combine] together and as soon as you dry it you get a kind of cork material, which is all bound together,” says Eric Klarenbeek.
There are a number of mushroom companies that sell the materials you need to grow-it-yourself (GIY). Here are 4 with experience of these kinds of projects.
Start here to get the MycoComposite Material
from Ecovative Design‘s
Grow.bio, which has GIY kits for shipment in North America, only.
Ecovative has licensed organizations in New Zealand Bio Fab NZ and the UK The Magical Mushroom Company.
For European users………………..
We grow our products under Ecovative Design’s license, and are proud of the Cradle2Cradle Gold certification that mycelium products have.
GIY kit HEMP
This is a Grow-it-Yourself kit, in which we provide you the material, substrate and instructions for accomplishing your OWN creation. If you want to really sculpt the material, order the extra sculpting mix (only available for the small kit). Sculpting mix turns the substrate into a clay’ish like substance that you can shape the way you want. We ship fresh substrate: ready to use. Only shipped within the EU. It is best to store it between 1-7 degrees Celsius and use it within 5 days upon arrival.
For European users interested in ordering large quantities of bulk material, for example: building projects, acoustical materials, contact CNC via ([email protected]) or go to their website: www.cncexoticmushrooms.nl
For Far East/Asia users………………..
Starting business in 2012 as mushroom producers, we have used the mycology lab of the Indonesian government and world class laboratories in Singapore and Switzerland to move forward. We developed an affordable sustainable material from renewable resources. It was developed from scratch at lab scale to pilot scale and already has been supplied to major projects, such as the Myco Tree. We are ready to be your supplier.
https://mycl.bio/faq#collaboration
Depending upon your level of experience with Mushrooms, you might want to check out:
Fungi Perfecti, LLC
Paul Stamets’ comercial center where you can learn almost everything about mushrooms, and get his famous book: Mycelium Running
** For the beginner, if you want to start from the beginning, making your own sterile culture may seem too difficult an adventure to start with. You can avoid possible risks of sterillized culture by buying ready-to-use mushroom spawn until you are familiar with the process. Yet eventually, every mushroom grower should create their own spawn so they are not forever dependent upon others.
Once you have pure spawn, the next step varies with the species being grown:
- Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) are best to inoculate hardwood logs or sawdust/bran blocks. Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) fruit well on pasteurized straw.
- The King Stropharia or Garden Giant (Stropharia rugoso-annulata) grow best in wood chips and/or wheat straw.
- Morels (Morchella spp.) are best grown outside in shady sawdust/ash beds. The Chinese Ling Chi, also known as the Japanese Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) can grow outdoors on logs buried in sawdust.
- Chicken-of-the-Woods (Polyporus sulphureus) can grow on stumps, as can many other gourmet species. The classic white button mushroom (Agaricus brunnescens) fruits on horse manure/straw compost.
- Most cultivating mushrooms will fruit on one of the substrates above.
• After the mycelium has colonized completely on the substrate, one should encourage the mushroom formation. In general, the key to fruiting mushrooms relies on altering the surrounding environment for the mushroom’s comfort. To change a set of environmental variables for mushroom formation is called an Initiation Strategy. Mushrooms form best when:
• Lower the temperature to a temperature ideal for fruiting
• apply water
• raise humidity
• lower carbon dioxide by increasing air movement
• introduce light & maintain it (with a few exceptions)
All my Mycelium posts
Additional posts, about Mycelium in Industry:
….all of which starts here:
Mycelium in Industry – Ancient and New
Construction industry,
Packaging industry,
Textile industry,
Furniture industry
Mycelium R&D Projects
Mycelium in Fashion Marketing – One Approach
May 2019 Mycelium in Industry update: Construction, Packaging, Textile, Furniture, +
June 2019 Mycelium Composites? Hands-on – Do it yourself
October 2019 Mycotecture? more-Mycelium in Construction
March 2020 “Mycelium in Industry” Where else can you get information?
March 2020 Mycelium in Construction?…some tangible progress
October 2020 Mycelium Is IN Textile/Fashion – 2020
December 2020 MycoProteins – Mushrooms To Meat?
February 2021 Construction, Mycelium, Industry..Wait A Minute
September 2021 Mycelium Momentum; World Is Waking Up.
January 2022 Myco-Remediation – Decompose And Remedy
July 2023 Mycelium Packaging – How To Make It A Business In 2023
List of suppliers of MycoComposite material
Suppliers of Mycelium Composite Material, around the world:
>>>>Australia:
>Mr. Russell Whittam, www.aussimushroomsupplies.com.au,
I’ve done lots of work with universities the last few years; supplying them with substrate and how to make their own materiel, etc. as well.
I’ve got a new product coming out about mid-2020 – for making things – just add water, spawn and mold the material. Then let it grow. Contact him at: [email protected]
>>>>Egypt: mycelium material This start-up team has patented their own myco-composite material using mushroom strains found in Egypt. They have started to sell bowls, pots and to offer Mycelium packaging. We offer different products in construction such as insulation panels and open to supplying packaging as protective packaging for those seeking eco-friendly alternatives. We are also open to other creative projects using mycelium material. Visit our website: https://mycellium.co/
>>>>Europe:
>Grown.bio – has a license agreement with Ecovative Design.
their new MycoComposite™ kits consist of only LIVING mushroom material and are supplied to the EU countries. Possible also for geographical Europe, but customs clearances must be taken care of by the person making the order.
Grown.bio is now supplying the Mycelium Composite ™ material to insulate buildings. They have insulated class rooms in an Amsterdam school building and in a house in a village near Rotterdam. Scroll down to Building & Architecture products here. They have supplied the MycoComposite™ to many of the projects taking place in Europe, recently, that have been mentioned in my posts. Grown.bio sells other things made from MycoComposite™.
>>>India:
Finally! >Roha.bio At Roha we develop Mycelium bio-composite based protective packaging that can replace Styrofoam using agricultural residue and mushroom mycelium, we do this by collaborating with farmers and self-help groups in the villages, boosting their income.
On other hand we collaborate with startups and brands in consumer electronics space , design and develop protective packaging for their needs. Roha.bio
>>>>Indonesia:
>MYCL, Mycotech Lab has an internship program. It makes a lot of sense to get some controlled experience with mycelium. MYCOTECH Lab produces and sells, mycelium board composite panels BIOBO, and supplied the labor and material for the MycoTree project.
>>>>Malaysia
>Fungitech Mushroom farm waste is always a big problem for mushroom growers all around the world. In our site, we fully utilise this farm waste to make 100% chemical-free and biodegradable mycelium biomaterial. Currently, we mainly supply this green biomaterial for packaging purpose. This patent pending innovative technology is able to solve mushroom farm waste problem and provide a greener life style to our mother Earth.
>>>>The Netherlands – for Large orders in the EU Mycelium Materials Europe (in short
MME) started in 2018. We grow sustainable mycelium materials based on mushroom technology. We produce two types of organic materials in our own mushroom farm: MyFoam® (pure mycelium foam) and HedelComposite Hedelcomposite is composed of sterilized residual sawdust and inoculated with mycelium. Ready to use. Grow your own biodegradable mycelium objects with Hedelcomposite in just one week! Maximum of 10 bags (300L) per order.
>>>>New Zealand
> Bio Fab NZ a new company that Ecovative has licensed in New Zealand. “Lesley, We currently work within Australasia so can only ship within New Zealand and Australia. We are looking at having a large scale plant open early to mid 2021 and aim to set up one in Australia soon after. We are planning on selling Grow-it-yourself kits, but not until our plant is up and running.” says James from [email protected]
>>>>UK
> The Magical Mushroom Company a new company/website in the UK. (Ecovative License)..The Magical Mushroom Company is the UK’s first-ever production plant manufacturing mycelium-based packaging. Founded by three friends wanting to make a difference.
>>>>USA:
>Grow-It-Yourself Kits for MycoComposite™ are now available direct from Ecovative’s Grow.bio. Here you will find all instructions, learning, and purchasing information. Grow.bio, however, only ships the MycoComposite™ material within North America.
>Ecovative LLC has transferred all their Mushroom Packaging production equipment to a facility 4x bigger at Paradise Packaging Co which is now handled under the general website: https://mushroompackaging.com. The new company and new website offer you more information about the mushroom packaging material and how it works.
>>>more places around planet Earth?
From Ecovative:
>If you are interested in building a business in MycoComposite technology, Ecovative is now handling partnership discussions from here: https://mushroompackaging.com/pages/licensing-form Licensing with Ecovative allows the partner to explore alternate substrates, techniques, and products.
>For other issues Contact Ecovative Here