Biodegradable Building Blocks: From Waste to Walls

In the building industry, the common notion is that the more durable a material, the more sustainable it is. However, in the fast-changing world we live in today, functions change, and space needs to adapt rapidly, causing more construction waste than ever. To respond to this condition, we researched to explore alternative building blocks that recover waste, use dry-stacking methods to increase reusability potential, and ultimately ensure biodegradability at the end of their life. To narrow our focus, the research questions are: How have we used recovered materials to create biodegradable wall components? How do we shape the blocks to enable a dry-stacking system and provide additional value to the wall design? What design potentials do the blocks have in composing a wall component? The research team, alongside students from “Appropriated Building Technology,” an elective course at the Architecture Department of Universitas Pelita Harapan, collaborated with Indonesian material makers to answer those questions. We developed the block prototypes from mycelium and sawdust waste (with Mycotech), coffee chaff waste (with Bell Society), and used cotton cloth (with Mortier). This seminal research is concluded by describing the characteristics of each bio-based block, testing their strength, and exploring the shape of the walls that the blocks can form. We are hoping to open up the potential for more biodegradable building materials.