Working with cork and clay is a challenging task. We experimented with creating  a mixture of cork and clay, by pouring powdered cork into clay, but the result was not satisfying. We also tried to combine the two materials in bigger elements, but clay cracked and contracted after drying. Thus, we decided to work only with cork, making finger joints that were very stable and created an interesting lighting effect.

For the laser cutting excercise our team worked with 3mm cork sheet. The material in such  thickness is very flexible but quite brittle. We tried several designs, from which the one that could be synthesized in a sphere was this cutout sphere. However, the fabricated result was extremely unstable.

FORMULA/CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

Wood is not composed of a bunch of identical molecules, so it has no chemical formula. It turns out that wood contains lignite, an organic polymer which is a name applied to a group of complex organic chemicals. Wood also contains cellulose, which is a polysaccharides with (C6H10O5)n as its formula.

The adhesive used for the layers is urea formaldehyde which is described as: C₂H₆N₂O₂

MATERIAL DESCRIPTION

Plywood is a sheet material manufactured from thin layers or “plies” of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another.

EXTRACTION PROCESS

The wooden veneers are cut to thicknesses  0.6 -  9.5 mm. The sheets are usually dried to a moisture content of less than 10 percent. This level is compatible with gluing and consistent with the moisture content to which plywood products will be exposed during construction. A number of adhesives can be used in the manufacture of plywood like urea-formaldehyde glue. This is a synthetic thermosetting glue and typical ingredients are water, defoamers, extenders (wheat flour) and urea-formaldehyde resin. After gluing, the layers of veneer are subject to pressure to ensure proper alignment and an intimate contact between the wood layers and the glue. The glue is allowed to partially cure under pressure. Pressing may be accomplished at room temperature (cold pressing), or at high temperature (hot pressing). Hot pressing equipment is used to cure some protein, some urea-formaldehyde, and all of the phenol-formaldehyde glues.

BASIC PROPERTIES

COMPREHENSIVE STRENGHT (N/M2)                                           31.000.000-41.000.000

TENSILE STRENGHT  (N/M2)                                                             31000000

STIFFNESS  (N/M2)                                                                                40.000.000

DENSITY (KG/M3)                                                                                  500-600

CARBON FOOTPRINT (AVERAGE KGCO2E/KG)                           4.2

RECYCLABLE                                                                                            yes

LASER                                                                                                         yes

SMALL LASER                                                                                          yes

MILING                                                                                                      yes

3D PRINTING                                                                                           yes

ADVANTAGE IN THE CONTEXT OF DIGITAL FABRICATION

Plywood is a very versatile material. It is used for constructions, interior design or even fashion. Due to its composition of rotated wood layers it is very durable. It can be worked on with different machines including CNC milling machines and laser cutter. If powdered it may be even used for 3D printing. To recycle it, the shredded parts are reused again for composite materials.

MATERIAL SUPPLIERS:

REFERENCES

Dragon Skin Pavillion 2011

Dragon Skin Pavilion
Hong Kong & Shenzen Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture 2011-2012
Tampere University of Technology

http://www.evolo.us/architecture/dragon-skin-pavilion-is-a-digitally-fabricated-plywood-sculpture/

Biominicry fashion 2011

”Biominicry”
Stefanie Nieuwenhuyse Womanswear Designer

http://www.fashitects.com/2011_10_01_archive.html

FORMULA:

Wood:C47O46H6N

MATERIAL DESCRIPTION:

It is dense, flat, can be easily machined and painted. Also as a kind of recycled material it is environmentally friendly, cheap and recyclable. The disadvantage of this material is that it would soak up water and other liquids. Also, MDF doesn’t hold screws very well. Standard MDF is available in a range of sizes, with the most common sheet sizes being 2400 x 1200 mm and 3600 x 1200 mm. Due to its manufactured form, MDF offers a non-directional grain making it easy to work with. MDF is good for interior furniture, it can be sawn, routed, spindled, planned or bored.

EXTRACTION AND REFINING PROCESS:

MDF is a kind of engineered wood product made from wood fibers glued under heat and pressure.

BASIC PROPERTIES:

compressive strength                                      10MPa

tensile strength                                                 18MPa

stiffness                                                             3800Mpa

density                                                                0.75g/cm³

carbon footprint                                               652 g/kg

recyclable                                                           YES

laser                                                                     YES

small laser                                                          YES

milling                                                                 YES

3d printing                                                         NO

ADVANTAGE IN THE CONTEXT OF DIGITAL FABRICATION:

MDF has no direction, no knots, and is flat, easy to fabricate. It can ensure cutting quality, can be precisely cut, and the cut surface will be neat.

MATERIAL SUPLIERS:

MADERAS ESTADELLA http://www.maderasestadella.com/productos.htm
GILABERT http://www.maderasestadella.com/productos.htm
SERVEI ESTACIO http://www.serveiestacio.com/
LEROY MERLIN http://www.leroymerlin.es/

PRICE:

2.128 EURO/KG

PRICE LIST  (FROM LEROY MERLIN)

SIZE                                                        PRICE(€)
600 x 300 x 10 mm                            2.45
600 x 300 x 16 mm                            3.45
800 x 400 x 10 mm                            4.6
1200 x 610 x 3 mm                             5.1
800 x 400 x 16 mm                             5.7
1200 x 600 x 10 mm                           7.15
1200 x 600 x 16 mm                           10.2
2440 x 1220 x 3 mm                           13.3
2440 x 1220 x 10 mm                         24.6
2440 x 1220 x 16 mm                         33.8
2440 x 1220 x 19 mm                         37.9
2440 x 1220 x 22 mm                        43.05
2440 x 1220 x 30 mm                        61.5

PROJECTS REFERENCES 

Project 1
A Laser cut prototype
Link: http://www.artisanmodelmakers.co.uk/Blog/Tag/laser-cut-wood.aspx

A really simple prototype made by MDF and laser. Simple, but showing a way how MDF boards become a volume.

Project 2
Laminae Table
Link: http://www.paredesaleman.com/p/furniture_01.html

It is a bridge-like table of arched supports on two sides. The starting point is an elastic surface stretched on two parallel axes and pulled down to become the supports, while keeping a central vault as its main structure. All the layers of MDF gradually come downward and upward generating the geometry of the entire table.

Project 3
Irregular honeycomb MDF structure
Link: http://www.dezeen.com/2009/05/20/3d2real-by-ilek-students/

An exhibition stand is created by student of architecture with an irregular honeycomb MDF structure. The stand was created to display the work of designers at design fair Blickfang in Stuttgart in March. Each cell of the structure is uniquely angled to focus the gaze of people standing outside the wall onto the individual objects within.
Each element of the structure is unique, generated by algorithms based on the location of the wall and the locations of the items exhibited. The screens are made up of 2,142 pieces joined by 1,376 unique pairs of connecting components. These components are made of CNC-cut pieces of 3mm and 10mm MDF, slotted together without adhesive.

Project 4
MDF laser cut
Link: http://www.lasercuttingshop.com/?projects=wood

Laser and MDF can together produce very fine patterns and go into very detail. It is really good for designers to make their ideas come into reality, as big as a house, or as small as a necklace.

REFERENCES:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium-density_fibreboard
2. http://www.addicted2decorating.com/mdf-vs-plywood-differences-pros-and-cons-and-when-to-use-what.html
3. http://www.coastdesign.co.nz/Router.htm
4. http://blog.ponoko.com/2011/05/03/mdf-for-the-month-of-may/
5. http://www.woodsolutions.com.au/Wood-Product-Categories/Medium-Density-Fibreboard-MDF