Material Ocean is an online resource dedicated to providing designers from around the globe with information on the latest and most interesting materials available.
Swedish researchers at Uppsala University have created a thin film, flexible battery made from polymer coated paper (pressed mats of tangled cellulose fibres) and an electrolyte made of paper soaked in salt – basically they are utilising salt and cellulose, two very common and cheap ingredients.
Due to the nature of the materials utilised the battery should be environmentally benign, easy to manufacture and cheap – which will make it an excellent candidate for powering cheap medical diagnostic equipment in developing nations. Other potential uses could include powering sensors on packaging materials, medical implants or fabric based devices.
TED – Not necessarily materials related, but here at MO we really love TED. If you haven’t seen it before then check it out – tons of videos that are full of amazing ideas and concepts.
Materials Science – Want to know more about the field of materials science…history etc? Then rock on over to Wikipedia for the low down.
What is D3O? – awesome materials video on Youtube.
As Material Ocean is just getting off the ground, we would love to know what you think of it so far and how we can improve it – please take our survey to let us know how to make it a more useful resource for you.
Edited by Blaine Brownell and published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2006, Transmaterial is, as it say on the cover, ‘a catalog of materials that redefine our physical environment’.
Transmaterial grew out of Brownell’s weekly email newsletter he shared with friends in an attempt to learn more about what was happening in the world of material innovation.
After a brief, engaging and easy to read introduction from Brownell, in which he delves into the seven broad categories he has created to classify materials innovations (Ultraperforming, Multidimensional, Repurposed, Recombinant, Intelligent, Tranformational andIinterfacial), the book dives right into the materials.
From interesting concrete variations such as carbon-dioxide absorbing cement through to fabrics such as Holofiber, a responsive polyester based textile, the breadth and depth of what is in this small book is impressive. Although it is important to keep in mind that Transmaterial is by no means a comprehensive guide to materials, but more of a “portable travel guide” on materials that provides “a brief snapshot within [Brownell's] on going effort to to learn about and celebrate innovative materials”.
The book has an architectural focus, as oppose to an industrial design focus, and as such some of the materials are more suited to architectural applications than design applications. However, overall I am sure the majority of Industrial Designers would benefit from materials inspiration from the architectural world to fire up the brain.
Transmaterial is an exquisitely curated, beautifully designed (Anyone who picks it up this book will note the page template utilized has been well thought out to make both causal browsing and targeted fact finding easy) and considered book that will provide you with food for thought and inspiration when you are stuck for materials to explore or utilise for your next design project.
This book is a must for any self respecting material afficiando or Industrial Designer’s book shelf.
Azom Materials Videos – lots of interesting videos on materials, technologies and processes.
MO Forums – you might not have known about our Forums, if you didn’t or you haven’t checked them out yet then rock on over and start some conversation.
As Material Ocean is just getting off the ground, we would love to know what you think of it so far and how we can improve it – please take our survey to let us know how to make it a more useful resource for you.
In the quest for an oil less world there are certainly many interesting technologies being explored, such as the Bio-feedback Algae Controller invented by Origin Oil in July 2009.
The Bio-feedback Algae Controller is a major break through in the “quest to transform algae, the most promising source of renewable oil, into a true competitor to petroleum”, but also has some other rather interesting applications.
Because the Bio-feedback Algae Controller is actually based on a “dynamic lighting process” which utilises tuned LED lights which vary in color and intensity to support algae growth at different stages of development (light along with nutrients are required to grow the algae), Emergent Architecture (based in Los Angeles) has utilised the technology to create the Flower Street Bioreactor.
The Flower Street Bio-Reactor “is an aquarium-like bioreactor inserted into the facade of the building, which contains green algae colonies that produce oil through photosynthesis. The aquarium is made of thick transparent acrylic, molded to create the intricate relief on the front. This relief tracks along with and supports an internal lighting armature which is based on the Bio-feedback Algae Controller.
Our primary goal was to create a sense of delight and exotic beauty around new technologies by decontextualizing them and amplifying their potential atmospheric and spatial effects.”
Imagine if you could print your own solar cells on your own desktop printer, and then take these print outs and plaster them all over your roof to generate electricity!
If Somenth Mitra (A Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences at the New Jersey Institute of Technology) has anything to do with it, then what I just described above could very well become a reality.
Traditional solar cells are made of silicon, but Professor Mitra is experimenting with creating polymers that when dissolved in solvents become like a paint and would then allow printer cartridges to be produced that could then print solar cells.
Bringing solar cell production to such an accessible level for consumers will not doubt have a profound affect on the world of electronics design or any other area that requires power – imagine laptops that are powered by a film of paint on the outside or the ability to print new solar cells for your roof, the possibilities for such a technology are as Professor Mitra puts it ‘endless‘.
The day when humans become more machine than man is fast approaching. Imagine if your skin itself could be utilised as a piece of electronic circuitry to interface with everything from your computer through to musical instruments.
Well you no longer need to imagine, the technology to make this possible is already here.
Bare Conductive is a conductive ink that was developed by RCA Industrial Design and Engineering masters students Bibi Nelson, Becky Pilditch, Isabel Lizardi and Matt Johnson.
Bare Conductive can be applied directly onto the skin and “allows users to interact with electronics through gesture, movement, and touch.” How cool is that!
Creatives Phil Clandillon and Steve Milbourne, from Sony Music recently used Bare Conductive to create the Humanthesizer (to promote Calvin Harris’s new single) which turns human bodies (scantily clad women to be more exact) into a musical instrument. Check out a video of Humanthesizer below.
What sweet uses can you dream up for Bare Conductive? Share your thought in the Material Ocean Forums.
TerraSkin is a brand of treeless paper, manufactured in Taiwan, that is one quarter polyethylene binder and three quarters recycled calcium carbonate (Calcium carbonate is the mineral found in marble and limestone).
According to TerraSkin the production of this “rock paper” requires no bleach, half the energy traditionally required to produce paper and no water.
TerraSkin is not only durable, but is also recyclable. TerraSkin is currently used in the production of tote bags for premium brands such as New York’s Museum of Modern Art and Erno Laszlo (personal-care). Burt’s Bees also utilises it for the packaging of their consumer products.
Although TerraSkin has many advantages there are two main disadvantages, Price (about 8% more expensive than traditional packaging paper, although this may change as demand increases) and that it will also break down into a talcum-like powder if exposed to humidity and sunlight for long enough.
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