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This Inflatable Bamboo Structure Unfolds Like Origami Into A Beautiful Greenhouse

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Design student Eliza Hague from the University of Westminster has developed a low-cost paper-like material from bamboo pulp to make sustainable inflatable greenhouses. The bamboo paper would be pre-assembled and transported flat to the site, then inflated and coated in shellac for weather-proofing. It could be an eco-friendly alternative to cheap polytunnels made of polyethylene plastic sheeting that has to be replaced annually, generating a lot of plastic waste.

This Inflatable Bamboo Structure Unfolds Like Origami Into A Beautiful Greenhouse
(Credit: Eliza Hague)

Hague based her project on helping Jaipur, India’s residents grow their own food and become self-sufficient. In rural parts of the country, such as Jaipur, polytunnels are common. If they used her structure instead, the environmental impact would be minimized. The bamboo could be locally sourced, and the shellac coating is a natural resin extracted from trees. India is also the second-biggest agricultural country globally, so you can imagine how much polyethylene sheeting waste it generates.

Hague also hopes that her project could encourage communities to favor a plant-based diet. Such a transition would help mitigate the demand for “destructive” meat-based farming. She said:

Meat consumption globally is ever increasing, especially in countries experiencing rapid increases in wealth such as India. Despite its population consisting of 337 million vegetarians, 71 percent of people living in India have a meat-based diet.

 

The amount of land required to farm meat is far more than that needed to produce vegetarian food, with even less space is required for greenhouse-grown crops. If everyone on earth had this diet, we would need at least two planet Earths to feed us all.

Hague began experimenting with different paper types because she was drawn to its cheap, translucent, and lightweight properties. She found it fitting to serve as cladding for affordable greenhouses. After experimenting and researching the different types of paper, she found bamboo to be the best and most sustainable choice.

This Inflatable Bamboo Structure Unfolds Like Origami Into A Beautiful Greenhouse
(Credit: Eliza Hague)

To make the structure, she secured multiple sheets together and folded them like origami to create hollow forms. She was inspired by the Mimosa Pudica plant, which closes its leaves when it senses danger. That’s how she came up with the idea of collapsible beams with inflatable hinges.

Not only does it look nice, but it also enables the structure to be flat-packed for easy transportation and storage. The walls would be flat sheets of bamboo paper fastened to the inflated bamboo beam structure. All of it would be coated with shellac. If needed, bamboo sticks could be used to provide additional reinforcement.

The design is modular, so rows of bamboo greenhouses could be connected to each other and shared houses. Ideally, the houses would be made from the soil as it provides a high thermal mass to shelter the inhabitants from the extreme temperatures in India.

This Inflatable Bamboo Structure Unfolds Like Origami Into A Beautiful Greenhouse
(Credit: Eliza Hague)

Since Hague envisions the greenhouses shared by multiple families, she created different potential typologies based on two- three- and four-person homes. The set-up would establish communal “greenhouse villages” in isolated areas, providing the family members with all the food they need.

Hague said:

The tutors in Design Studio 10 encourage you to analyze what it means to be truly sustainable in architecture, rather than integrating sustainability as a generic requirement which is often seen throughout the industry. This helped to develop my project into something that challenges the suitability of widely used materials and current lifestyles. In light of the pandemic, the idea that architecture can provide spaces to encourage self-sufficient living has become more prevalent as we rely on supermarkets more than ever. This notion stimulated the desire to create a design that not only responded to its local environment but proposed innovative solutions to these challenges.

She is currently developing the design further so it can be an accessible alternative to plastic someday soon.

The post This Inflatable Bamboo Structure Unfolds Like Origami Into A Beautiful Greenhouse appeared first on Intelligent Living.


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