CARBON ABSORPTIVE FAÇADE DESIGN

A case for carbon–negative materials: Made of Air

What does it mean to be carbon-negative?

• Carbon negativity is the reduction of an entity’s carbon footprint to less
than neutral so that the object in question has a net effect of removing
carbon dioxide from the atmosphere rather than adding to it. This
description is synonymous with climate positivity, which refers to an
activity which goes beyond achieving net zero carbon emissions, to
create an environmental benefit.
• In the context of climate change, and the growing awareness that the
building industry contributes heavily to global emissions–the process of
creating concrete alone accounts for an estimated 5 percent of human-
caused carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions annually–there has been
tremendous momentum to create carbon-negative materials and
products. From green cement to substitutes for wood-based particle
boards, to advanced self-healing materials (which either reduce CO2
generated over their lifetime or sequester it for their healing process)–
carbon negativity is the motto of the day in architecture and construction.
• One such carbon negative material–tangible, scalable, and versatile–is
Made of Air. The radical and new biochar-based material is robust,
thermoplastic, and is composed of 90% atmospheric carbon. The dense,
smooth, fire-retardant material presents itself as a sustainable alternative
for use in construction, interiors, furniture and more.
And how is it created?
• The starting point for Made of Air is waste biomass.
• Biomass is an organic material which comes from plants
and animals.
• Throughout its lifetime biomass absorbs CO2 from the
atmosphere, as well as sunlight, storing energy from the
sun.
• Transforming this absorbed, fixed CO2 into a useable
form is the next step.
• This waste biomass is baked to a stable form of carbon by
pyrolysis, in an oxygen-free oven environment. This form
of carbon is then mixed with a biodegradable binder to
yield a moldable and carbon negative material.
• After being shaped into products for building facades or
interiors, at the end of its lifecycle, the material can be
shredded and sequestered in the earth.
• This cycle can be repeated continually, allowing for more
and more atmospheric carbon to directed to the earth.
• Made of Air was invented by Berlin-based studio Elegant
Embellishments, and is spearheaded by founders Allison Dring and
Daniel Schwaag.
• The material is being cast into faceted panels for building facades and
interiors–intricate and finessed shapes that display the evolution of this
material.
• It is also highly customizable, being a thermoplastic, the base material
can be formed into custom designs for varied uses.
• So where does the use of such a carbon-negative, recycled, recyclable
and circularly designed material lead us? For one, using Made of Air can
help architects, real estate developers, and cities achieve their climate
targets by significantly reducing the CO² footprint of buildings.
• On the other hand, widespread use of products cast from the material
could lead to a shift in perception and attitudes–the fact that all
consumption isn't bad for the environment.
• In this case, consuming sequestered-carbon heavy products, and at a fast
pace, would not be bad for the environment at all, because this
consumption takes away more carbon from the environment.
• The other shift is one that is already in motion–the everyman's growing
belief that carbon dioxide can be a resource, and that waste-based
products can be scalable, usable, advanced and highly impactful.
A Carbon-Negative
Façade Panel that
Absorbs CO2

• Berlin-based think-tank Elegant

Embellishments, co-founded by
architect Alison Dring and
production expert Daniel
Schwaag, has developed a
biochar-based, carbon-negative
building material made of 90
percent atmospheric carbon
dioxide named Made of Air.
• The new material uses biomass,
an organic waste, which absorbs
and stores carbon dioxide.
• The new material uses biomass, an organic waste, which
absorbs and stores carbon dioxide.

• To produce Made of Air, the biomass is baked and stabilized

through a pyrolysis (thermal decomposition) process in an
oxygen-free oven.

• The baked carbon substance is then mixed with a biodegradable

binder to create a carbon-negative material that can be molded
and shaped into various forms, including façade panels.
• By the end of its life span, Made of Air can be shredded, and
then sequestered in the soil.
• "Using or consuming products which have sequestered carbon
reduces the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere," the company
says on its website. "Inverting common assumptions of
sustainability that consumption is bad for the environment."
[Elegant Embellishments]
• https://www.architectmagazine.com/technology/this-week-in-
tech-a-carbon-negative-facade-panel-that-absorbs-co2_o