Getting our shit together

The aim of this project is to optimize cow manure into a 3D paste printer filament, with the final goal of 3D printing inhabitable manure houses. In the Netherlands there is an abundance of cattle, which produce overwhelming quantities of dung. So, we asked ourselves: What to do with all this poo? The cow was central to the project: it is like a living 3D printer. On top of that, the huge nitrogen emission of the Dutch agricultural industry puts a halt on construction of houses during the current housing shortage. By making 3D printed houses out of cow dung, the problem becomes the solution.

We collected cow poo from a local farm outside of Amsterdam. We added several binders and fillers to the manure to make the best possible filament out of it. Eventually, three recipes yielded promising results. They were combinations of cow dung with the binders methylcellulose, sodium alginate and xanthan and additions of the calcium carbonate, tapioca starch and glycerin. After hacking a 3D printer into a paste printer we had to generate our own GCODE in Rhinoceros and Grasshopper. We had to perfect the settings for every recipe and eventually we were able to 3D print a miniature house out of cow dung. After these steps, only the recipe of manure with sodium alginate, calcium carbonate, tapioca starch and glycerin filled all the criteria. It has well printed, has well bonded layers, is a strong material and is hydrophobic. With this project, we have therefore delivered a proof of concept for 3D printing houses out of cow dung, which offers great possibilities for further development.

Together with my teammembers, we got selected for the final of the Biodesign Challenge and we presented this project at the Dutch Design week in 2021. We also reached the Dutch radio 

Please watch this video to get a good understanding of this project, or click on the button above to go to the website dedicated to this project. 

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