The Use of Mycelium Bio-Composites for Environmentally Sustainable Insulation

The production of traditional insulation materials consumes significant amounts of energy, polluting the environment. Therefore, the requirements for sustainable construction produce demand for new, low-cost and environmentally friendly materials. One such material proposed is fungal mycelium which, combined with organic matter from agricultural and industrial waste, forms a bio-composite material with unique structural properties including fire and water resistance, and thermal insulation. This investigation compared the thermal insulation performance of mycelium bio-composites to conventional insulation materials (EPS and EPS70E). Two types of fungus (Pleurotus ostreatus and Pleurotus eryngii) were grown and a series of experiments were conducted. These involved constructing containers out of the materials and measuring the time taken to heat and cool the inside air, and the energy required to maintain a constant temperature inside. This was done to compare their thermal properties (thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and heat capacity) to conventional insulation materials of expanded polystyrene (EPS and EPS70E). The results showed that mycelium had slightly higher thermal conductivity compared to both EPS samples. However, the mycelium composites displayed excellent capacity to absorb, store and release heat with thermal diffusivity two to three times lower than that of EPS. These characteristics make mycelium bio-composites a good choice for thermal buffering applications, especially in developing countries with hot climates.