Living Wall Systems Prototype Presentation

The Living Wall Systems (LIWAS) prototype is the outcome of research carried out at Petra Gruber’s lab at The University of Akron’s Biomimicry Research and Innovation Center, intersecting art, architecture, and biology. The methodology of biomimicry as information transfer between biological research and technology has the goal of creating sustainable innovation. LIWAS is based on biological signs of life such as openness, growth, self-organization, limitation, energy processing and order translated to architectural design. LIWAS is about the development of adaptive, resilient, eco-friendly, energy-efficient architectural wall systems that promote the growth of organisms and incorporate water management and recycling.

The prototype wall integrates two innovative facade panels:
• Mycelium material – a new recycled lightweight material made of organic waste such as wood chips or corn stalks, with fungus mycelium as a binder. This material is already available on the market, and the research focuses on its specific application as the base for a green facade.
• Leaf ceramics – Ceramic tiles are shaped using patterns taken from plant leaves. The shape of leaf edges influences evapotranspiration of water, and this effect has the potential to cool buildings facades and conserve energy.

The present installation at the UA Field Station at the Bath Nature Preserve will be used to monitor the performance of the panels and the long-term effects of their exposure to outdoor conditions. It will also serve as a scaffold to test larger-scale prototypes of the experimental panels.