Material Making Booklet

Material Making The Big Here and the Long Now

Contents: The ‘Shelf Scrap Steel’ Annie Cockerill

Material Mapping Ben Dean

Loom Tapestry Charlotte Wood

The Fish Glass Constance Tso

Waste Food Dye Emily Cowell

‘Gambling on a Door’ George Spendlove

Zero Waste Chair Henry Cahill

Corrugated Packaging Irene Dumitrascu - Podogrocki

Bamboo Stool Janet Tam

Bent Wood Lampshade Katherine Bluff

Eggshell Birdhouse & Bird Feeder Marisa Bamberg

The Big Apple Meg Longman

Jute Woven Chair Sohpie Wakenshaw

Used Coal Lampshade Victoria Haslam

The Swiss - Planter Zak Yiassoumis

Life in a Bottle Zhana Kokeva

Organic Kombucha Leather Xueqing Zhang

The ‘Shelf Scrap Steel’ Annie Cockerill Through looking at the redevelopment of the Redcar Steelworks the idea of reusing materials from demolition has become a primary focus. As scrap steel would be the primary waste product from the demolition, I began to look at ways we could, on a small scale reuse them in design. To start this journey I walked around Newcastle locating scrap steel found on the streets. To begin to understand the scraps I looked at their properties which could bend and therefore be used as joining materials, and also which were non-bendable to be used as supporting elements.

Material Mapping Ben Dean My project began as a research tool and developed into a mapping exercise showing the locations and characteristics of the four different demolition sites I am currently considering within my studio design project. Each piece of brick was found within each demolition site respectively and was used to map the route followed on the journey I undertook between them. By doing this I hoped to illustrate the material ‘traces’ which are left behind from demolition and highlight the significance of the waste material which is produced.

Loom Tapestry Charlotte Wood Acknowledged as one of the oldest surviving crafts in the world, the basic principle of weaving was applied to interlace branches and twigs. Therefore, to understand the artistry and virtuosity of traditional craft, this material making exercise studies a combination of historical crafting techniques, such as weaving, lacing and threading, using waste thread and branches. The exercise serves to further embrace the notion of tradition, by depicting the story of the Luddite attack on textile manufacturer, William Horsfall, who was a prominent supporter of technology.

I. Compression Method

Pour - spread evenly - compression - remove from mould

I. Casting Method

The Fish Glass Constance Tso The core idea is to recycle the fish waste in response to the touristic seafood culture and waste problems in Venice. Two approaches have been used to turn fish scales or the prawn shells in to bioplastic, through either compression or casting. A series of casts are carried out to experiment the materiality of the bioplastic, focusing on the transparency and the strength so that they could become reliable construction materials. The strength depends on the amount of glycerin in the mixture and the level of compression, and the transparency depends on the amount of cornstarch.

20% cornstarch

60% cornstarch

20% cornstarch + acid

spinach

onion skin and tops

cauliflower leaves

Waste Food Dye Emily Cowell At the start of this project I experimented with using produce that I thought would create a intense colour, going for beetroot and spinach. However, using veg that could have been eaten seemed like a waste, so I switched to using leftovers such as cauliflower leaves, onion skins and lemon rind. After making the first few dyes I encountered issues with longevity, with them going mouldy after two weeks. To prevent this from happening again I stored the rest of the dyes in the freezer however, if I were to go into more depth, I would investigate using preservatives as a different method for prolonging the dye.

‘Gambling on a door’ George Spendlove I wanted to explore the process of re-using elements from demolition sites, which informed this material making where I reconfigured an old door into a poker table. Through simple processes to rejuvenate the door, I was able to give it new life and a new use instead of just allowing it to be down cycled into just scrap materials.

Zero Waste Chair Henry Cahill Having been looking at various forms of digital manufacture throughout my thesis so far I decided to focus on CNC routing for the material making project. I studied the work of Seungji Mun, who created ‘Four Brothers’, a series of 4 chairs from a single sheet of plywood with minimal wastage and maximal material use. After iterating a series of prototypes at 1:5 scale, I developed a design to produce a set of 6 dining chairs from a single sheet of 18mm birch plywood. I hope to produce one example of my final design in full scale using the university workshop cnc router when I am able to do so.

Corrugated Packaging Irene Dumitrascu-Podogrocki We utilise 12.5 million tonnes of paper, each year. With such an abundance of cellulose in nature and industry, why not explore this resource further? Origami and kirigami techniques utilise paper’s mechanical properties and convert its weaknesses to strengths. Possible partnerships with other materials (i.e. the joint and the face) are highlighted in the folding process, swapping through the grades.

According to “At This Rate” report, SUEZ, 155 kilo-tonnes of dry household waste (paper) per annum, is rejected by recycling centres. This pulp is directed towards the agriculture and energy sectors, skipping an opportunity for further reuse or recycle; companies like HONEXT repurpose rejected paper pulp in the manufacture of their interior panels (recycle - reuse). Within the recycling section of the paper industry, a ratio of 30:70, Virgin pulp (sawdust): household dry waste, is needed to maintain optimum mechanical properties. I wanted to increase my understanding of the adhesives’ relationship to the aggregate and the subsequent mechanical properties.

Bamboo Stool Janet Tam Bamboo is often compared to timber because of the similarities in its technical condition and its natural cell structure. Timber has successfully established its current position in the industrial era.

It is manufactured into CLT, LVL, glulam,etc. Meanwhile, the production method of mass timber is directly applied to bamboo manufacture, hoping to reintroduce this traditional material in the market as a standardised, conventional, new ‘sustainable’ option. Products like plybamboo and CLT-equivalent bamboo composite material is made. However there is not much value in doing so other than economical reasons. The idea of material driven design is to demonstrate the material’s unique quality instead of further developing it as an alternative option or substitute.

Material quality: High ductility - ability to change its shape without breaking.

High strength - ability to withstand certain load without failing.

Lower elasticity - ability to return to its original shape when force is removed.

The seat structure is designed to have a spring-like, bouncy, cushiony feeling when it is sat on as opposed to traditional bamboo furniture. Re-establish bamboo through offering a different tactile experience. Material is used in its natural form without over processing until it’s unrecognizable.

Strips is chosen as it is widely used for handmade traditional crafts.

Assemble Joint uses both old(tying) and new(3D print technology) techniques. Element of weaving is integrated back to the final design. Four modules is secured together simply with a basic weaving pattern. Strips are used in its original length for both the seat and legs other than the 2 middle strip. It’s trimmed to fit individual curves.

Potential use for off-cuts and sawdust: Composite material (1. Grind into flakes, mix with resin, pour in formwork OR 2. Make 3D print filament)

Bent Wood Lampshade Katherine Bluff The project began with exploring the material making process to understand what was possible with steam bending. The interest in this process came from its link to my thesis project, with its use in the past to shape wood for the hulls of boats. I wanted to focus on reducing process waste as much as possible, as some steam bending waste is as high as 80%. The first experiments in the workshop with the ash wood as a hardwood were successful. After the workshop closed, the method of bending wood changed from steaming to soaking. Three pieces of 2m leftover pine stripwood were used, and as this was softwood, it is more prone to breakage and splitting. Out of the 24 smaller pieces, 1 piece splintered and snapped, meaning I had a 4% breakage rate. Using small drill holes and paper fasteners allowed only a small amount of sawdust to be created, which could be mixed with pva to fill in gaps in floorboards.

Eggshell Birdhouse & Bird Feeder Marisa Bamberg Using 250 eggshells (approximately how many eggs a hen will lay in a year) and a found acrylic tray, the eggshell biomaterial is used as a sheet material first (to make the birdhouse). The remainder was recycled and used as a cast material (to make the bird feeder). Placing the birdhouse and feeder in a domestic garden in Rothbury, Northumberland allowed the opportunity to test the application according to its function. The goal for this application was to better understand how the biomaterial responds to weather and the impact it has ecologically.

The Big Apple Meg Longman In the juicing of apples to make cider, 50% is left as ‘pomace’ - consisting of pulp, peel, seeds, core and stem. It spoils rapidly and so in the UK, most cider pomace is fed to cattle or composted.

This amounts to tonnes of near wastage. Experiments into the potential domestic uses for pomace though preserving, processing or providing for other animals suggest alternatives and lead to thoughts on its industrial potential.

Jute Woven Chair Sophie Wakenshaw This project involved taking a jute floor mat and repurposing it for an alternative use. The jute reflects fishing nets, and the timber reflects fishing boats, and that links this chair to theme of my design project. Using anthropometric data, I designed a chair that would be comfortable to sit on.

I then constructed it from timber, using dowels as fixings. To complete the chair, I took apart the mat and re-wove the jute into the seat and arms.

Used Coal Lampshade Victoria Haslam After burning coal domestically, usually the old coals are collected and disposed of. After using coal in a fire pit, I collected the all the old coals and ash used to create the fire, in hope to create something from them. I started by crushing the coal into different sizes (Burnt coal is very easy to break unlike fresh coal). I experimented with casting the coal in resin. I also wanted to experiment with making my own silicone mould. For this I decided to create a simple soap dish. I made the former out of clay and set it in silicone. I then used the silicone mould I created to cast a coal and resin soap dish. (This was just an experimental output).

Through doing my experiments I really liked the way that the coal would break up the light passing through the resin. I decided this would be a good material for creating a lampshade. Despite experimenting with creating a silicone mould, I decided a silicone would not be a suitable for creating a lampshade as I did not have enough. Therefore I made a simple mould out of cardboard.

When casting large items in resin, it must be done in layers with intervals. Each layer I mixed resin with different amounts and sizes of coal. I used all of the coal I had collected and all of the resin.

Unfortunately I ran out of resin during the process, so the lampshade isn’t the exact shape I wished to create.

The Swiss - Planter Zak Yiassoumis Following the idea of redeveloping an industry in the design project of both an almond milk production line and a roastery, an idea of reuse of the waste products has emerged. Both the almond shells and waste coffee grounds are biodegradable and usually transformed into compost, but an approach to create something viable within the construction / design industry was the target of this experiment, using a waste material to minimize the usage of more harmful and unsustainable methods.

Life in a Bottle Zhana Kokeva Stage 1, 2 and 3 show the cleaning process (label and residue removal). Stage 4 was the preparation of the section which I wanted to cut out, heating it up with a small gas powered torch. Using an electric Dremel to cut the bottle in stage 5, a huge cracked appeared ( stage 6). To prevent cracking the glass again, a syringe full of cold water was used to lower the heat created while cutting the bottle (stage 7). That seemed to work (stage 8) but was very difficult to keep a constant flow of water while cutting. Therefore, I used the sink to provide a constant low water current (stage 9), which was preventing the glass to crack while being cut (stage 10).

In experiment two I filled the bottle with water (stage 2) providing extra cooling while using the low water current from the sink. That resulted in an easy cut with no cracks (stage 3 and 4). In stage 5, I sanded the sharp edges to prevent any safety hazards and then removed the labels and residue. In experiment three, I used the cut out piece and smashed it into small fragments (stage 1). In a tin can, I tried to melt those fragments using the heat of the stove underneath and Propane gas torch over (stage 2). The heat was not enough to fully melt the glass (stage 3), but the pieces bonded together (stage 4).

1. store bought kombucha

2. store in warm + dry place, allow to ferment 2-4 weeks a. store bought

START: 06/11/2020 a. store bought

b. home brew

OR home brew black tea distilled water + black tea + white sugar

b. home brew TOTAL INCUBATION TIME: 51 days

Organic Kombucha Leather Xueqing Zhang I wanted to work with bio-materials in this exercise because I was interested in the growing my own sustainable material, which could be made at home. With a material such as leather, there are many different processes it has to go through which produces toxic wastewater and pollution. However, there are alternatives to leather, and for this exercise I explored the process of brewing kombucha to produce a leather-like substance that has many of the same qualities as animal leather, whilst being biodegradable.

When kombucha is fermented, it creates sedimentary layers of SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) on top of the liquid, which is usually thrown away, but in this case is what the leather is made of. I started the fermentation process in November 2020, which allowed me time to experiment with two variations, using store bought kombucha and a home brew to see if there was any difference in the Scoby produced. Once the SCOBY has grown to an adequate thickness, it is dried and tanned, and then cut into the desired shape.

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