Noteworthy
The production of cement – used as a binder in concrete – has a high carbon footprint, accounting for 5%–8% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions. The search for alternative materials with reduced impact on global warming has come up with some interesting options, as Janie discussed before.
One unconventional alternative involves the use of microbes to generate engineered living materials: materials that contain living cells to achieve functions such as self-assembly, self-healing, and photosynthesis. In a recent report, scientists generated a fungal-bacterial arrangement that shows promise for the design of novel engineered living construction materials. (See the paper for figure explanation.)
The authors combined a mycelium scaffold, built by the fungus Neurospora crassa, with the biomineralizing bacterium Sporosarcina pasteurii. Microbial biomineralization results in the precipitation of calcium carbonate, which is useful for building or repairing structures. The structural complexity and increased microbial viability of this novel material pave the way for new and sustainable biomaterials with properties and attributes of living systems needed to catalyze a transformation in construction practices worldwide.
("Noteworthy" is the new format for STC's Thursday posts. Please read our Jan 20, 2025 post outlining this and other changes in our blog.)
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