on august 15th, there was an official opening of the first experimental pavilion, realized by the department of biobased materials and material cycles in architecture (biomat) of the institute of building structures and structural design (ITKE) in the faculty of architecture and urban planning, university of stuttgart. the installation, located at the university campus in the city center, is a double-curved, parametrically designed segmental shell of light, single-curved wood and biocomposite elements, which are supported by three curved crossed wooden beams. the biomat research pavilion demonstrates the architectural and structural potential of innovative building materials made from agricultural production wastes.

 
 
  in the course of research work prior to the construction of the pavilion, special wood-based biocomposite plates were developed. the core of the plate is a flexible board made of natural fibers mixed with bioplastic, manufactured through an extrusion process. the natural fibers, such as straw, are waste coming from agricultural production, which finds its second life as material for architectural use. this material used as the core board was developed previously by the head of biomat, prof. hanaa dahy. one of the main advantages of this board in comparison to, for example, MDF, is exceptional elasticity which allows for forming even extremely double-curved surfaces, without heat or water treatment. the CNC cut fiberboard cores are later laminated on ...