Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems

This research investigates contemporary textile techniques and plant-based “active” yarns to describe a new material system and fabricate lightweight structural prototypes. We define “active yarns” as bio-based structural yarns, filaments that store elastic energy, and flexible stems from short rotation cop-pice (SRC) plantation species. SRCs are woody fast-growing tree species often cultivated to produce high biomass yields in a short period. This research fo-cuses on Willow (Salix spp.), the most spread SRC in Europe. Due to their fil-ament structure, SRC plantations produce rod-like flexible stems with finite lengths. To overcome length limitations, we industrially produced a cord-like yarn with bundled filaments and materials with different properties. Wood-bending techniques can shape these active yarns into warp-knit loops and later be assembled into larger structures. This lightweight construction method lev-erages sustainability thanks to the combination of a fast renewable source of material like SRCs with efficient use of raw material resources granted by the ability of knitting to produce the form with almost no waste. Moreover, this material assembly method of rigid loops allows for re-assembly. As a result, the material would recover energy as part of the biomass production chain.