The material is flexible, strong and has a smooth texture. It's see-through and good for packaging materials. it's a little sticky.
Physical form
Grains & Powders
It's made from Agar Agar. Agar Agar is a jelly-ish subtance made from red algue. And is ussualy used with making desserts.
Color without additives: white/yellow and see-through
Fabrication time
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Processing time: 5 to 7 days
Final form achieved after: 4 weeks
Yield
Approx. 5 to 7 days
Estimated cost (consumables)
including use of disposables likegloves
Pan, dish, mixer, Agar powder, water, gylatine
Water
250 ml
Solvent
Agar Agar powder
5 gr
Plasticiser
Glycerine
20 gr
Stickyness and flexibility
Mixer
Is this tool optional?No
Pan
Is this tool optional? No
Dish
Is this tool optional? Yes
1. First you mix the water with glycerine.
2. Heat the mix in a pan.
3. If the the mix is heated you put the Agar Agar powder in the pan and mix it for 20 minutes. Don’t let the liquid boil.
4. After 20 minutes you can pour the liquid on a suitable plate.
5. The sheet will be dry within 4 to 5 days.
[Describe the setup, including details of mold and tools used (e.g. press, breathers, other) and other details pertaining to the process here]
Mold depth 22cm x 22 cm x 1 cm
Shrinkage thickness [20] %
Shrinkage width/length [0] %
Shrinkage and deformation control
This recipe doesn't shrink in size, only a little bit in thickness.
Minimum wait time before releasing from mold 5 days after molding it.
Post-processing
Store the material on moisture absorbing paper for a few days for less stickyness and the best end material.
Further research needed on drying/curing/growth?
Yes
Maybe trying less glycerine, something like 10 gr.
Image guidelines: images should be landscape format and sharp. Please provide captions so the viewer can understand the elements of the setup. Include images of the drying/curing set-up
Variations¶
Which variations can be made with the same recipe? Mention other physical forms, additives etcetera. Provide references if applicable
You can make it less flexible by adding less glycerine to the recipe.
Make the texture less smooth by cooking the recipe less than 20 minutes.
Cultural origins of this recipe
Agar Agar is mainly used as a replacement for gelatine in all kinds of recipes.
Needs further research? Yes
I don't know about any cultural references.
The recipes I used as inspiration for my final recipe come from the online book called:
Biofabricating Materials from Cecilia Raspanti for Fabricacadamy class 29 Oct 2019, which you can find here:
https://www.google.com/url?q=https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lm147nvWkxxmPf5Oh2wU5a8eonpqHCVc/view&sa=D&ust=1591284586496000&usg=AFQjCNHPKefOQ7G-EkEcCNBEd4nnY2fHmA
I prefer to use Agar Agar in my recipes, because this substance is generally easy to get at a
local drug store, a biological store and in food warehouses (Holland&Berret and Sligro in The Netherlands). Agar Agar is a non-petrol-based alternative that is vegan.
I have created an Agar Agar recipe that is strong, flexible, smooth and see-through. It has everything we love about plastic, but then without the plastic. Once the material has been cooked and reached a stable form (takes up to 3 to 4 days) it can be recycled and reused up to 3+ times. You just heat the substance up and pour it into something of your choice. The material is soluble in water at 80 degrees celsius and can withstand several hours of being exposed to 40 degrees Celsius. It’s a perfect bioplastic bag which you can use, reuse, recycle or throw away responsibly if the material it self is clean.
Sustainability tags
Renewable: Yes
Vegan: Yes
Made of by-products or waste: no
Biocompostable: Yes
Re-usable: yes, heat it up.
Needs further research?: No
Based on technical property categories used in the Material District archive https://materialdistrict.com/material, and the sensory descriptors categories proposed in: Lerma, Beatrice (2010). Materials ecoefficiency and perception. Proceedings: CESB 2010 Prague - Central Europe towards Sustainable Building 'From Theory to Practice': pp. 1-8.
Strength: strong
Hardness: rigid and flexible
Transparency: transparent/variable
Glossiness: glossy
Weight: light
Structure: variable
Texture: smooth
Temperature: cool/medium
Shape memory: medium/high
Odor: strong
Stickiness: medium
Weather resistance: medium
Acoustic properties: needs further research
Anti-bacterial: needs further research
Non-allergenic: needs further research
Electrical properties: needs further research
Heat resistance: medium
Water resistance: water resistant
Chemical resistance: needs further research
Scratch resistance: moderate
Surface friction: medium
Sensitive to color modifiers: further research needed
Maker(s) of this sample
Name: Kim Sinke
Affiliation: University of Applied Sciences Amsterdam
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Date: April untill June 2020
Environmental conditions
Humidity: not sure
Outside temp: [18-32] degrees Celcius
Room temp: [20-30] degrees Celcius
PH tap water: 1-14
Recipe validation
Has recipe been validated?
No
Images of the final sample
Final recipe by Kim Sinke, University of Applied Sciences Amsterdam, Minor Makerslab, 2020
Biofabricating Materials from Cecilia Raspanti for Fabricacadamy class 29 Oct 2019, which you can find here: https://www.google.com/url?q=https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lm147nvWkxxmPf5Oh2wU5a8eonpqHCVc/view&sa=D&ust=1591284586496000&usg=AFQjCNHPKefOQ7G-EkEcCNBEd4nnY2fHmA
