flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Lab-grown bricks offer potential low-carbon building material

Lab-grown bricks offer potential low-carbon building material

Prototype uses bacteria to grow a brick in a mold.


By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor | September 30, 2022
Grow Bricks
Courtesy Pexels.

A team of students at the University of Waterloo in Canada have developed a process to grow bricks using bacteria.

The process, which works at room temperature, offers a new low-carbon way to fabricate bricks. The brick-growing process starts by introducing bacteria to a nutrient broth.

Recycled sand or demolition waste can be mixed in to create the Bio-Brick. The result is a product that is as strong and affordable as bricks traditionally used in construction sites today and can easily be grown onsite for any project, the product’s developers say.

The technology, still in the prototype phase, was named a runner-up for the James Dyson Award.
 

Related Stories

| Dec 6, 2011

New office building features largest solar panel system in New Orleans

Woodward Design+Build celebrates grand opening of new green headquarters in Central City.

| Dec 5, 2011

New York and San Francisco receive World Green Building Council's Government Leadership Awards

USGBC commends two U.S. cities for their innovation in green building leadership.

| Dec 5, 2011

Summit Design+Build begins renovation of Chicago’s Esquire Theatre

The 33,000 square foot building will undergo an extensive structural remodel and core & shell build-out changing the building’s use from a movie theater to a high-end retail center.

| Dec 5, 2011

Fraser Brown MacKenna wins Green Gown Award

Working closely with staff at Queen Mary University of London, MEP Engineers Mott MacDonald, Cost Consultants Burnley Wilson Fish and main contractor Charter Construction, we developed a three-fold solution for the sustainable retrofit of the building.

| Dec 5, 2011

RJM Construction begins building Nova Classical Academy in St. Paul

As the general contractor, RJM is constructing the 94,000-sf building that will consolidate the St. Paul school’s two other locations. 

| Dec 5, 2011

Gables Residential brings mixed-use building to Houston's Tanglewood area

The design integrates a detailed brick and masonry facade, acknowledging the soft pastel color palette of the surrounding Mediterranean heritage of Tanglewood.

| Dec 5, 2011

SchenkelShultz Architecture designs Dr. Phillips Charities Headquarters building in Orlando

The building incorporates sustainable architectural features, environmentally friendly building products, energy-efficient systems, and environmentally-sensitive construction practices.

| Dec 2, 2011

What are you waiting for? BD+C's 2012 40 Under 40 nominations are due Friday, Jan. 20

Nominate a colleague, peer, or even yourself. Applications available here.

| Dec 2, 2011

Legrand joins White House initiative to spur energy efficiency in commercial buildings

Company agrees to aggressive energy savings and reporting.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Curtain Wall

7 steps to investigating curtain wall leaks

It is common for significant curtain wall leakage to involve multiple variables. Therefore, a comprehensive multi-faceted investigation is required to determine the origin of leakage, according to building enclosure consultants Richard Aeck and John A. Rudisill with Rimkus. 


halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021