New Materials in design

"As the speed of technological progress continues to accelerate, innovation threatens to outpace architects' and designers' working knowledge of materials, thereby limiting their applicability. In order to stay at the cutting edge of design, a knowledge of the uses, properties, and sources of new materials is essential. A sequel to the critically acclaimed and best-selling book Transmaterial, Transmaterial 2 is a clear, concise, accessible, and carefully edited resource that provides information about the latest and most intriguing materials commercially available.

Based on a compilation of Blaine Brownell's ""product of the week"" electronic journal, Transmaterial 2includes more than two hundred materials and is indexed in multiple ways for maximum convenience. An excellent ideas generator, Transmaterial 2 is an indispensable tool for any architect or designer looking to keep up with the current trends in the field of materials."

"These days, whether you're designing a building or a toaster, a savvy knowledge of materials is increasingly critical. And keeping up with the constant flow of new materials, let alone their applications, properties, and sources, is an increasingly difficult and time-consuming task. Blaine Erickson Brownell, author of Transmaterial, known to thousands of web users for his ""product of the week"" email service alerting designers to new materials that are reshaping our world, has created this handy and affordable reference to the most interesting and most useful new materials now available.

Transmaterial is indexed in multiple ways for the sake of maximum convenience, and utilizes the new CSI Master-Format 2004 product categorization system. With more than 200 materials, organized by category, described, pictured, and annotated with technical and sourcing information, this catalog is an essential tool for any architect or designer interested in keeping up with the rapid developments in the field of materials, looking for a source of inspiration for their designs, or just eager to get their hands on real materials in an effort to understand the incredibly innovative palette now available to us."

Concrete is an omnipresent material within the constructed environment, and over one cubic meter is made annually for every person on earth. Although concrete was originally invented by the Romans from pozzolan, aggregate, and quicklime-called opus caementicium-it wasn't until the integration of steel reinforcement that concrete really took hold in the construction industry. Reinforced concrete became one of the primary materials in modern building as a result of its strength, adaptability, and ease of manufacture.

Virtually every revolution in architecture has been preceded by a revolution in materials: think iron, glass, steel, concrete, plastics, or composites. What is the next revolutionary material that will reshape the very nature of architecture? A solid that's lighter than air, metal latticework so delicate it rests on a dandelion, building insulation made from processed seaweed, self-generating microbial glue that repairs cracks in concrete, or transparent solar panels?

Materials expert Blaine Brownell, author of our bestselling Transmaterial series, reveals emerging trends and applications that are transforming the technological capacity, environmental performance, and design potential of architecture in Transmaterial Next. This book is an essential compendium for thinking architects, designers, and other creative professionals passionate about materials and looking for their bleeding edge and practical implementation.

Progettare architetture sostenibi-li è un'attività che impegna pre-valentemente la parte sinistra del cervello. L'obiettivo di realizzare edifici più efficienti dal punto di vista ambientale richiede l'utilizzo di metriche, checklist, linee guida e certificazioni: strumenti indi-spensabili per valutare le prestazioni, ma inefficaci per rispetto al controllo della qualità architettonica. Essi infatti inducono spesso ad adottare scelte progettuali che si allontanano dagli standard abituali, ma nello stesso tempo producono risultati da essi indi-stinguibili. È per questo che tali strategie rimangono nascoste, o risultano troppo simili alle soluzioni convenzionali per poter esse-re apprezzate. Ne consegue che la sostenibilità non riesce a espri-mere una propria estetica, uno stile, una forma, o una specifica espressione materica, mentre la comunicazione del cosiddetto "green-design" viene affidata alla narrazione del progetto-un te-sto scritto, una targa di certificazione, o una descrizione orale-invece che all'architettura stessa. Non che la sostenibilità debba avere un linguaggio proprio, ma la mancanza di una chiara rico-noscibilità è un' occasione perduta: l'architettura dovrebbe guarda-re alle istanze ambientali come a un' opportunità per sviluppare nuove forme di espressione, e ciò costituisce un cambiamento che richiede un ripensamento sulla materialità dell'architettura.

This research work evaluates the impact of stormwater infiltration on the removal of organics, solids, nitrogen and phosphorus in a LECA-based horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetland. Stormwater runoff for the period between January 2008 and June 2010 (30 months) was estimated for the drainage basin of the Vila Fernando wastewater treatment plant (constructed wetland system) and it was observed proportionality between the increase in surface runoff and the infiltration flow rate that reached the plant. The average stormwater infiltration rate that reached the plant was 67.4 m(3) d(-1) (77% of the influent flow rate into the plant). The 30 month monitoring campaign set up at one of the reed beds showed that stormwater infiltration led to a high variation of the hydraulic loading rate (HLR) throughout the bed, which affected its performance in the removal of organic matter, suspended solids and nitrogen. For a HLR below 20 cm d-1 the removal efficiencies for BOD5, COD and TSS doubled. The removal of nitrogen was too low and was associated with the weak development of nitrifying biofilm and the poor growth of reeds. However, it was observed a good relationship between the applied and removed loads for most of the parameters, which seems to indicate that the organic, solid, nitrogen and phosphorus loading rates influenced the respective removal rates. The use of a bed material with high specific surface area, such as LECA, can only improve the treatment capacity of horizontal subsurface flow systems if the organic and solid loading rates, as well as the HLR, can be effectively controlled.

It can be argued that Japan contains a higher number of internationally significant architects and designers relative to its geographic size than anywhere else in the world. Japanese designers regularly implement radical experiments in new materials and building systems that successfully address imminent energy and resource challenges. These technological achievements are combined with an acute awareness of the ephemerality of existence, creating a rich dialogue between the concrete and the abstract.

This paper presents a life cycle cost analysis of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) reinforced concrete highway bridges. This study shows that despite the higher initial construction cost of CFRP reinforced bridges, they can be cost effective when compared to traditional steel reinforced bridges. The analysis considers the cost items of initial construction, maintenance, repair, rehabilitation and demolition activities and the associated user costs as determined by traffic volume, speed, operation and crashes. The analysis is performed for a 100-year service life. The cost information has been obtained from the literature, FHWA, and Michigan DOT. The most cost efficient alternative for side-by-side box beam bridges was a medium span CFRP bridge located in a high traffic area. Depending on traffic volume and bridge geometry, a probabilistic analysis revealed that there is greater than a 95% probability that the CFRP reinforced bridge will become the least expensive option between 20 and 40 years of service. The break-even year for the CFRP reinforced bridge is typically at the time of the first major repair activity, a shallow deck overlay, on the steel reinforced bridge.

¿Que tienen en común los productos de compañías tan diferentes como los productos de Apple, Nike, Nokia o BMW?
Bueno, pues además de ser líderes en sus diferentes segmentos de mercado, estas compañías están ahora desarrollando productos con un alto grado de innovación. De hecho, todas ellas están creando sus productos con una nueva metodología de diseño conocida como “innovation driven by desgin”, que traducida al castellano sería “Innovación dirigida por diseño”.
El principio de esta metodología de diseño es la de crear experiencias asociadas a cada producto (Nathan, 2008), siendo estas experiencias intensas y de fácil recordación. Y es aquí que para lograr esas experiencias y sensaciones en el uso de los productos se recurre al uso de nuevos materiales, desarrollados en muchos de los casos especialmente para ser aplicados a productos específicos.

Blaine Brownell's best-selling Transmaterial series has introduced designers to hundreds of emergent materials that have the potential to transform our built environment. In our new Architecture Brief, Material Strategies, Brownell shows architects how creative applications of these materials achieve such transformations. Chapters based on fundamental material categories examine historical precedents, current opportunities, and future environmental challenges. Case studies featuring detailed illustrations showcase pioneering buildings from today s most forward-thinking architectural firms.

The world is fundamentally different today than it was yesterday. Our global paradigm is characterized by crumbling energy regimes, dwindling raw materials, fading geopolitical boundaries, global warming, and the radical transformation of our physical environment. For the first time in human history, more than half the population of the Earth now lives in cities. 1 At the same time, cities are being transformed , often in dysfunctional ways, especially due to endless sprawl. The explosion of urban populations worldwide is now a common topic of concern. Cities are reevaluating smart growth strategies while seeking sophisticated transportation solutions to unprecedented levels of congestion. Meanwhile, energy and material resources continue to be depleted at an accelerated rate, inspiring a host of conservation programs and environmental reforms initiated by both the public and private sectors. Architecture is currently undergoing one of the most fundamental and unprecedented shifts in its history, both in the eyes of its makers and its users. Given the newfound awareness of humanity's undeniable impact on the health of our planet, coupled with the fact that buildings use roughly half of all resources, a new challenge has arisen that architecture must address. For as long as we can remember, architects have attended to the fundamental qualities of function and form in their work. Create an edifice that is practical as well as beautiful, we were told, and you have succeeded. However, this simple recipe is no longer sufficient. We know architecture should not merely be a collection of attractive and pragmatic objects that suck large amounts of resources, serve the needs of relatively few people for relatively short periods of time, only to be demolished and injected into the great human waste stream. We now need more from architecture. In addition to function and form, architecture must be imbued with foresight.

What will fashion look like in 2070? During the Covid-19 pandemic in spring 2020, I considered what fashion might look from the consumer’s perspective in five years’ time . The ‘new normal’ is changing the way we see the world, and increasing our broader understanding of the important part fashion and clothing plays in the connected, global, ecological future we are facing. This short essay looks even further ahead, taking three garment types and exploring how they might be made and used in 50 years’ time, drawing on insights from multiple research projects and partnerships at Centre for Circular Design.

Mimaride “malzeme/materyal” sadece bir strüktürü oluşturmada pragmatik bir araç ya da dekoratif bir etkiden ziyade, siyasi bağlamda direnme jestini tasiyan, konusan bir nesne olabilir mi? Filistin işgal topraklarında, Batı Şeria'da mimarlik pratigini surduren Anasta Mimarlik Ofisi, yerel malzeme ve ustalarla guncel tasarımlar üretiyorlar. İsrail'in mekan ve planlamaya dayanan somurge stratejilerine karsı; Batı Şeria'da geleneksel malzemeyi tasarımla yeniden anlamlandırarak ve kaybolmakta olan zanaatkarların üretim agıni, guncel tasarim teknolojisi ile devamliligini amaclayan Anastas kardeşler, guncel Filistin mimarisini yeniden tanımlıyorlar. Beytüllahim’de, 1970’lerde kurulmus olan Anastas mimarlik ofisi, Anastas ailesinden Yusuef ve Elias Anastas tarafindan yurutuluyor.

Natural fibre reinforced eco-friendly composites are becoming an attractive alternative for synthetic materials. Natural fibres are cheaper in cost, environment-friendly, renewable and biodegradable. The properties of natural fibre reinforced polymer composites are determined by problems like poor bonding, poor wettability, and degradation at the fibre-matrix interface and the damage of the fibre during the manufacturing process. In this work, composites using short (6mm) banana fibre in a natural rubber matrix, with a 30% v/v fibre content are prepared using compression moulding at 150°C and the composites obtained evaluated for mechanical properties like tensile strength and tear strength. A total of six specimens using natural rubber as matrix and banana fibres subjected to various surface treatments as reinforcement. The surface treatments given to the banana fibres are alkaline treatment, benzoylation, potassium permanganate treatment and the pre-impregnation in dilute rubber solution. The influence of various chemical treatments on the fibre surface and on the mechanical strength and the fibre matrix interfacial bonding of the composite studies with the analysis of the mechanical properties of the composites indicated that the treatments given to the fibres produced an improvement in tensile modules. Tear Properties obtained shows the best results were for fibres treated with Natural rubber preimpregnation followed by alkaline treatment and permanganate treatment in the order.

Since the 2006 publication of his best-selling first volume of Transmaterial, author Blaine Brownell has become the undisputed master of new materials, inspiring architects and designers looking to transform the structure, spaces, and surfaces of their projects with the latest high-tech and environmentally friendly products. The third volume in the critically acclaimed series presents over two hundred emergent materials, products, and systems that have significant potential to transform the constructed world. Transmaterial 3 provides a broad synopsis of the state of technological advances in materials today with a special emphasis on new developments in the field of biopolymers and various agriculturally derived products; biomimetic products, systems, and processes that seek to emulate natural examples including low-embodied-energy and biochemically manufactured products; "grown" materials; nanoscale marvels; renewable energy technologies; "second-life" materials derived from repurposed waste; and responsive, interactive, and transformational digital interfaces that harness pervasive communication networks and are powered by low-energy illumination sources. An excellent ideas generator, Transmaterial 3 is an indispensable tool for any architect or designer looking to keep up with the current trends in the field of materials.

Se han realizado ensayos de rayado como parte de una completa caracterización de una estructura polimérica bicapa rífido-flexible utilizada en los mangos o asas de herramientas y electrodomésticos. El objetivo del estudio es conocer el comportamiento y características de estas estructuras para mejorar el diseño y desempeño de estas conformaciones en el diseño y desarrollo de productos.

"2000+: The Urgencies of Architectural Theory... collects new essays from a range of the most compelling architectural historians and theorists of the moment, including Lucia Allais, Beatriz Colomina, Mark Cousins, Arindam Dutta, John Harwood, Catherine Ingraham, Mark Jarzombek, Mari Lending, Spyros Papapetros, Felicity Scott, Pelin Tan, Bernard Tschumi, Eyal Weizman, Mark Wigley, and Mabel Wilson. Brought together for a conference marking the end of Mark Wigley’s tenure as the dean of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, these thinkers chart new directions and points of critical importance for theory in architecture."

224 pages, paperback, 5mm x 8mm
1-941332-07-2

Photoacoustic spectroscopy was used to study nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide film. The energy positions of defect and impurity centre levels are reported. The energy levels were obtained using the excitation method and the mechanisms of the photoacoustic signal generation are discussed. The visible light absorption of the yellow film was explained considering electronic transitions between localized states within the band gap and the transitions from these states into the conduction band. Moreover, first principles calculations revealed that nitrogen doping and oxygen vacancies in titanium dioxide induce defect levels within the gap which account for the absorption in the visible light.

The speed with which new materials are developed and brought to market today has no precedents in human history. We have available a myriad new materials derived from such traditional ones as wood, ceramics and glass; and we have materials that perfect the performances of the materials of modernity, from steel to plastics. For this reason MADEC (www.madec.polimi.it), the research centre
on the culture of materials of the Milan Polytechnic, has decided to
take action to increase the awareness of smart materials, to stimulate
designers to experiment with new materials and urge researchers
to share information.

In this paper, a multilayer ReS2 p–n homojunction is fabricated on an oxidized Si substrate, and its photoemission under a forward bias and its photodetection under a reverse bias are reported for the first time. Au nanoparticles were used to make lateral p–n homojunctions. The device shows room temperature photoemission in the IR range, and in the photodetector mode, it shows a 0.41 A/W responsivity under illumination by a 660 nm red laser.

“May material live? May human beings, animals and plants be materials, or only lifeless material and formerly living material, now dead for a sufficient time, like limestone, coal or a wooden board? “
The possibilities offered by the most recent technologies to develop living materials and processes evolve according to their own nature, together with a series of pilot experiments in the field of DIY biology. These considerations trigger an imaginary dialogue with Doctor Victor Frankenstein (Shelley M., 1818), between past and future, about the experimental approach of the lab and a new kind of living, productive horizon.

X-ray powder diffraction data for CuGa 0.15 In 0.85 Se 2 and CuGa 0.50 In 0.50 Se 2 are reported. Indexing of the X-ray diffraction powder pattern and the Rietveld refinement confirmed that these compounds crystallize in the tetragonal crystal system, with space group I-42d No. 122 and lattice parameters of a = 5.75282 Å and c = 11.52253 Å for CuGa 0.15 In 0.85 Se 2 and a = 5.68471 Å and c = 11.28171 Å for CuGa 0.50 In 0.50 Se 2. The CuGa x In 1−x Se 2 system presents the chalcopyrite type crystal structure CuFeS 2 and corresponds to two stacked zinc-blende unit cells. The metal atoms Cu, In, and Ga are regularly ordered in the unit cell. Every Se atom is tetrahedrally bonded to two Cu and two In and Ga atoms.

The strength of adhesion between two over-moulded polymers, methylmethacrylate–butadiene–styrene copolymer (MABS) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) that constitute a bi-component laminar system has been the subject of study. Results showed that at the bi-layer interface the adhesive fracture tough- ness increases as temperature and surface roughness are increased. Roughness has been demonstrated to be the most important parameter defining adhesion strength and failure. With the increase of roughness the failure was observed to change from adhesive towards cohesive type. An increase in either the temperature or the pressure applied to the samples caused a rise in adhesion energy. However, pressure seemed to have a minor effect in comparison to temperature. Significant increments in adhesion were obtained after applying the corona discharge treatment (CDT) to the attaching surfaces resulting in adhesion strengths almost double those of non-treated systems.

In addition to the mitigation of carbon emissions through the reduction of building energy consumption, the prevention of fire spread in buildings is important an important task globally. Therefore, a growing interest towards building materials that can simultaneously contribute to energy savings and provide good flame-re-tardant performance in buildings exist. The flame-retardant performances of buildings can be improved through the use of inorganic building materials during construction. Meanwhile, among the different types of construction waste, more than 70% of ceramics can be recycled, which would reduce carbon emissions in the production process. Ceramics are inorganic and non-flammable, and can thus secure the flame-retardant performance of buildings. In this study, recycled ceramic-based inorganic insulation to secure the flame-retardant performance of a building are analyzed for their energy saving values. A case study building was modeled and the flame-retardant performance and building energy consumption were analyzed. Setting the thermal trans-mittance of the external wall according to the energy conservation design standards in South Korea, the tradeoff between model calculates annual energy consumption fire protection and minimization of material environmental impacts are discussed. As a result of simulation, when a wall constructed according to the energy conservation design standards of buildings, the building energy was saved by 18.6% and fire resistance performance was secured.

What will we be made of and what will the world be made of? Sciences and technologies are extending design fields, modifying materials and everything that surround us, even our body, redefining on a perceptive level the boundary between things and us. To identify the actual evolution of the relationship between sciences, knowledge and design, the Madec (Material Design Culture Research Centre) of Politecnico di Milano, started in 2014 a wide debate with a series of contributions about innovation trajectories with well known scholars of many disciplines, researchers, professionals and companies. This public debate, entitled "Ideas and the matter" opens new options for design action today, new ideas, and the definition of design approaches, contributing to the development of a new methodology of creativity-driven material innovation that, in a world full of opportunities but also problems to be solved, helps design to play a role of "giving new meanings", through designing materials and things with a critical approach. This is a mission designers cannot abdicate, following the successes of "Design Thinking", which was opening up to social innovation challenges and achieving creative solutions beyond the reach of conventional structure and method. At the same time, "Open Innovation" is a go-to process stimulating way of creating positive change in production. This book is the compendium of Madec's one-year research. The contributors of the book come from several and diverse disciplines (medicine, biotechnology, engineering, art, anthropology, architecture and design), which design thoughts are fed by. MADE IN ITALY EURO 16,00 DESIGN EXPERIENCES The and Material Design Culture Research Centre is the research center and network dedicated to materials for design of the Design Department of Politecnico di Milano. It deals with the relation design-materials among design history and actuality. The center carries researches on the Italian Culture of Materials Design, intended as the capacity of the Italian design to interpret materials and technologies in order to generate products and environments innovation. The research team is composed by:

We present calculations of the band structure, density of states and the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric functions in intrinsic TlN and AlN, both for wurtzite and the zinc-blende polytypes. They are based on the local density approximation (LDA) within the density functional theory (DFT), employing the first-principles, full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method. We correct the band gap of the AlN by using a quasi-particle method proposed by Bechstedt and Del Sole. The calculated energy gaps, lattice constants and dielectric constants for AlN are in good agreement with available experimental values while for TlN there is no experimental investigation.