In Mythic we develop the best available mycelium biocomposite that can be used as a circular, biodegradable insulation material for the construction industry. We focus on making mycelium biocomposite thermal insulation and moisture absorption, as well as making the production process more energy efficient, water consuming and faster. Also economically, more information is needed to ensure that it is accepted on the market. Part of the project will be to design the material in such a way that people are interested in using it at home.
Climate change and the depletion of resources in the world are widely recognized as the greatest societal challenges. The building sector is responsible for 40% of the raw material consumption globally. The emissions related to construction materials are anticipated to double by 2050, if no new technologies are adopted (EC, 2021). Based on the environmental cost indicator, isolation has the second largest (after concrete) impact to the environment.
In Mythic goal is to develop the best available mycelium biocomposite, which can be used as a circular, biodegradable insulation material for the building sector. In recent research projects partners concluded that Mycelium biocomposites have a high potential to replace traditional fossil-based isolation materials,
Economic and social acceptance
In precursor projects we concluded Mycelium biocomposites are promising in characteristics like thermal conductivity, hydrophobicity and flame retardance. Also, the material characteristics start to get close to those of conventional building materials with a likewise application. The fact that it is easily repaired and biodegradable adds on to the wish to research the material for further application. In Mythic we will focus on making myceliumbiocomposite thermal insulation and moisture absorption, as well as making the production process more energy efficient, water consuming and faster. Also economically, more information is needed to make sure it is accepted on the market. In the field of social acceptance, part of the project will be on designing the material in such a way that it interests people into applying it in their homes. We aim for a product that can directly be produced for application in biobased building construction projects.
Consortium
In the project various partners will cooperate, both from the production side of mycelium composites, as well as from the application side. Some partners have worked together with CoEBBE before, some are new in research. There are several SME’s from the Netherlands, but also from abroad (Nylausn from Iceland, Mogu Srl from Italy and Corstyrene form France), as well as Branche organizations and knowledge institute, bith from the biobased reals as wel as from the conventional building material field. For the microbiological knowledge we cooperate with the University of Utrecht. For the market research CoEBBE cooperates with the lectorate New Marketing within Avans, focussing on sustainability via biomimicry. Mycelium composites and natural products for the building industry is the theme that binds all partners. All partners are listed below.
