Materials

The next step is to find the right materials. In order to make a fully composite shell structure, which is able to withstand high loads and environmental impact, one cannot use any general material. The sandwich structure used for the roof and the side walls will exist of two components; woven bamboo mats with epoxy resin facings and a foam core.

The bamboo mats will be woven in a traditional Balinese village near Ubud. Because labor is relatively cheap, all the mats will be woven by hand. A specific type of bamboo is used in order to create the right properties required for the panel. To make the material even stronger, only the best part of the bamboo is used. In this case the best part means the outer part of the bamboo, just below the ‘skin’. In this part the best vascular bundles exist with a high density.

The resin, that is going to be used for the bamboo laminates, is still an issue that needs some more research. To find the best resin, that is available in the area, some samples have been ordered and tests have to be done. One of the important criteria, next to the mechanical properties, is the pot life (time you have to apply it to your product, before it starts to cure and become thick) and the viscosity (how liquid the resin is and how easy to apply). After doing some tests (see pictures below) with several resins, these points turned out to be critical for a lot of resins. Therefore more tests are required.
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