Rachel Armstrong: Architecture that repairs itself?

Summary

The speaker challenges traditional architectural practices, advocating for sustainable design by integrating nature with buildings. By developing 'metabolic materials' inspired by living systems, the aim is to create structures that actively engage with their environment. Through innovative protocell technology, which mimics biological processes, buildings could grow, self-repair, and adapt. The speaker highlights how this approach could be used to restore ecosystems, like Venice, and proposes a shift from industrial, top-down methods to bottom-up, nature-connected construction, creating architecture that blurs the lines between the natural and the artificial.

Takeaways

• 😀 Current building technologies are based on Victorian-era practices, which are energy-inefficient and unsustainable.
• 🌱 Sustainable architecture requires connecting buildings to nature, not insulating them from it.
• 🔬 Metabolic materials are key to sustainable architecture, functioning like living systems that interact with their environment.
• 💡 Protocells are simple, life-like systems that can move, undergo reactions, and can be engineered to create sustainable building materials.
• 🏗️ Protocell technology could be used to create self-repairing, energy-efficient, and responsive materials in architecture.
• 🌍 The goal is to shift from top-down, imposed construction methods to bottom-up, nature-connected processes.
• 🪨 Limestone, a material with natural properties, could be enhanced through metabolic interactions with the atmosphere, potentially gaining self-repair and growth abilities.
• 🌊 Venice serves as a real-world example where protocell technology could be used to repair and protect the city's foundations with a limestone reef.
• 🧑‍🔬 Metabolic materials have vast potential in ecological interventions, such as restoring atolls or addressing water damage in cities.
• 🌎 The protocell technology is based on terrestrial chemistry, making it applicable and beneficial for both developed and developing countries alike.
• 🏙️ The future of architecture may feature buildings that seamlessly blend with their natural surroundings, making it difficult to distinguish between natural and artificial creations.

Q & A

What is the main issue with current building technologies, according to the speaker?

The speaker argues that current building technologies, which are based on Victorian-era methods, are unsustainable. These methods result in buildings that are inert and do not integrate with the natural environment, leading to a one-way transfer of energy rather than a sustainable exchange with nature.

How does the speaker propose to make architecture more sustainable?

The speaker proposes connecting buildings and cities directly to nature by using metabolic materials. These materials engage in chemical processes similar to living systems, enabling them to be more sustainable by interacting with local resources, such as absorbing or producing energy.

What are metabolic materials, and how do they function in architecture?

Metabolic materials are substances that can undergo chemical reactions to convert one substance into another, akin to the metabolic processes in living organisms. In architecture, these materials can interact with the environment, repair themselves, grow, and potentially offer sustainable alternatives to traditional construction materials.

What is the role of protocells in this new approach to architecture?

Protocells are simple, life-like structures that the speaker and collaborators are exploring to create metabolic materials. These protocells are capable of chemical reactions and can form materials like carbonate shells, which could have architectural applications such as building resilient and sustainable structures.

Can you explain the process of protocells creating limestone?

Protocells can extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert it into carbonate, which forms a shell around the protocell. This process, although still being studied, could enable the growth of limestone-like structures that might be used in construction, offering self-repairing and sustainable properties.

How could protocell technology be used to address environmental challenges in cities like Venice?

In Venice, protocell technology could be used to grow limestone reefs around the city's decaying wooden piles. This would help to stabilize the city's infrastructure while also sequestering carbon dioxide, promoting ecological recovery, and strengthening the buildings against water damage.

What is the significance of bottom-up construction approaches in this context?

Bottom-up construction refers to building materials that grow or evolve from the ground up, rather than being imposed on the environment in a top-down manner, as is common with traditional construction. This approach is more in harmony with natural processes, offering more sustainable and adaptable solutions for architecture.

How does the speaker view the potential of scaling metabolic materials for large-scale projects?

The speaker sees the potential of scaling metabolic materials in large-scale projects, such as the reclamation of damaged urban areas like Venice. By using these materials, it's possible to create ecological interventions that repair and regenerate cities, allowing them to adapt to environmental stresses while contributing positively to the ecosystem.

What does the speaker mean by 'architects think big' in relation to metabolic materials?

The speaker suggests that architects, when considering new materials like metabolic ones, think beyond individual buildings and envision their application in larger ecological contexts. They look for ways to use these materials to repair ecosystems, reclaim damaged areas, and create architectural solutions that benefit entire cities or regions.

What are the long-term goals of using metabolic materials in architecture?

The long-term goal is to develop materials that can self-repair, grow, and evolve in response to environmental changes. Over time, this approach could lead to buildings that function more like living organisms, seamlessly integrating with the natural world and offering sustainable solutions that are adaptable to various environmental conditions.