His hemp and seaweed example is very rudimentary, but would be incredibly cost effective. Hemp PLA material for 3D printing purposes is already available and of course vacuum molding can be done with matting material and resin.
Who's going to grow their own panels, also note that switchgrass or bamboo would also work well, though bamboo is difficult to process into a matte form.
That'll pay the oil companies back for changing the name of hemp and making it illegal, just so they could sell sails and rope!
In reply to captdownshift (Forum Supporter) :
I have enough bamboo in the backyard to build several Challenge cars.
In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :
Bamboo is the toughest of the three as it's fibers are difficult to break down and the strength of the fiber is highly directional. For bumper covers it would be amazingly functional though, as it compresses, leaving imperfections (think NA Miata front license plate mounting points) but it makes for nice absorption qualities and it's great for sound isolation. For some interior bits it'd make for a nice alternative to "soft plastics" as would softer injection molded hemp mixtures.
that's cool for sure. I wonder if there are things you can use other than seaweed.
In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :
Traditional resins and bonding agents do work with hemp fiber. I believe that he's focusing on being as green and biodegradable as possible.
In reply to captdownshift (Forum Supporter) :
I would assume so as well. But the traditional resins are the expensive part (for challenge purposes).
They are, and they also aren't the easiest to work with from a ventilation standpoint either.
Hemp or bamboo you can grow though... Whatever panels you replace can be sold to yourself to make the mold and used towards recoup to offset resin cost.
Cheech & Chong in 5,
4,
3,
lol
In reply to noddaz :
I'm legitimately interested as it's a material option that won't kill you if you breathe in the fibers when doing finishing sanding. That's not to say that you want to breathe in the fibers when sanding and that they won't do damage, but fiberglass and carbon fiber particles when sanded if inhaled will literally kill you over time without a large number of it needing to be present.
I would certainly wear an n95 when working with any material when doing finishing sanding, but you really need a full-on proper respirator if working with non-natural fiber.
In reply to captdownshift (Forum Supporter) :
We might be seeing far more of it soon- Aptera is using it for the body of their car. They claim they could get it to work by weaving it into shape and then vaccum forming it.
How about making the components out of mycelium, like this canoe? (Literal and not metaphorical this time.)
The woman who built it says that it works very well except that the hull sprouts a crop of mushrooms after every trip on the water.
In reply to MadScientistMatt :
That went from smoke on the water to psilocybin fast! The idea of a lemons build that sprouts mushrooms and has a sign on it that says "the mushrooms are toxic, do not consume the mushrooms, the mushrooms are NOT a bribe for the judges and are not fit for human consumption" sounds absolutely amazing.
In reply to MadScientistMatt :
But COULD they be edible? That could be an awesome permaculture method, a literal living machine!
In reply to GIRTHQUAKE :
Fish and sauteed mushrooms for dinner again?!
GIRTHQUAKE said:In reply to MadScientistMatt :
But COULD they be edible? That could be an awesome permaculture method, a literal living machine!
The article didn't say what mushroom the canoe used, but it's probably something edible. The company she worked with to grow the canoe normally cultures edible mushrooms.
I've got access to vacuum bagging equipment. Don't know what I'd make but it would be cool to build lightweight door panels or some such for the racecar.
Parts of the Smart fortwo dash are made from flax.
noddaz said:Cheech & Chong in 5,
4,
3,
lol
"What do you guys want?"
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