No, we're not the first to engage in sustainable design. In fact, "there are between 10 and 30 million species and each and every one of them has learned through evolution to fit gracefully into their space," said Janine Benyus, author of Biomimicry. "A sustainable world already exists that is 3.8 billion years in the making." And as Benyus points out, that's "3.8 billion years of R&D" on which (if we're smart) to piggyback our own efforts to make life more earth-friendly.

Thankfully, some have already taken notice and are turning to the world of fauna and flora for clues to solving human dilemmas. Introduced in Benyus' book, they include biochemists seeking to unravel the mystery of photosynthesis, and thus find a better way to harness the sun's energy, as well as material scientists who are probing spider silk, which, ounce for ounce, is stronger than steel. While their exploits may or may not much impact how we use, live in and design our kitchens and baths of the future, Benyus, in her interview for last month's Profile, offered several examples that most likely will.



Keeping it clean

In our homes and elsewhere, common wisdom tells us that smooth surfaces are easier to clean. In the plant world, however, this is not always true. One example is the lotus, an aquatic perennial and a symbol of purity in its native Asia. Emerging from the floors of ponds and swamps, lotuses float on the water's surface via large, round leaves that remain immaculate despite the plant's muddy beginnings. German botanists have examined the leaves under electron microscopes and found on their surfaces a network of nano-sized bumps that are key to the plant's ability to self-clean. According to Benyus, unlike on smooth surfaces, which can cause water to spread and cling, dirt teeters on the tops of the microscopic structures, so "when it rains, the water balls up, instead of spreading out, and rolls off the leaf, picking up loose dirt particles."

Several companies have created products based on this phenomenon, which has since been termed the "Lotus-effect." They range from roof tiles by Erlus and Ferro's glass coating system to Lotusan, an exterior building paint by Sto. All were developed to make maintenance a cinch: surfaces can be cleaned without the use of detergents or sandblasting. In addition, according to Sto's website, Lotusan is algae-, mold- and mildew-resistant and has already been used on numerous buildings in Europe as far back as seven years ago. How have the buildings held up? Benyus noted, "They're pristine." For exterior and interior areas, including kitchens and baths, Degussa has introduced spray products that apply a temporary Lotus-effect to surfaces. The coating lasts for several weeks but can be easily removed by wiping it with a cloth.

Beyond these products, the Lotus-effect may provide other solutions for the kitchen and bath. Imagine it, for example, on bathroom tiles, in showers or inside plumbing, where its dirt-repelling properties could help prevent pipes from clogging. The possibilities seem wide-reaching and the future promised is one free of harsh detergents. In the meantime, for more information on the phenomenon, visit www.lotus-effekt.de.



De-bugging the system

Anti-microbial countertops and toilet seats are just some of the latest hygienic-minded products to enter the kitchen and bath market. However, like most such products, they fight bugs by killing them. In hospitals, the use of biocides has caused some bacterial strains to evolve and develop resistance and, therefore, is not a long-term solution. Furthermore, standard antibiotics have proven ineffective against biofilms, which is what can result when enough bacteria collect on a surface. "Biofilms are aggregations of cells and the extra-cellular materials that those cells produce," said scientist Peter Steinberg. "It's essentially slime," the very same that can grow in bathrooms when they haven't been cleaned.

But if biocides are not the answer, what is? Enter Biosignal, an Australian company that Steinberg founded with colleague Staffan Kjelleberg in 1999. Built on the idea of commercializing compounds that can inhibit the formation of biofilms, the company owes its genesis to a seaweed, Delisea Pulchra, which, unlike many other aquatic organisms, is rarely covered in marine "slime." It does this by producing furanones, a chemical that interferes with the signaling system used by bacteria to communicate with each other, form colonies and "coordinate activities across millions and billions of cells at once," Steinberg said. "The signaling system is called quorum sensing because it tends to be most effective when the bacteria are in high densities, or quorums." By interrupting signaling, furanones prevent bacteria from assembling into quorums, which, said Benyus, is when they "turn on their toxicity."

Currently, and not surprisingly, Biosignal is interested in using its compounds in the medical arena, where many infections, noted Steinberg, are biofilm-based. Also of interest are industrial and domestic applications in which its antibiofilm products, for example, could mean cleaner water treatment systems or, as surface cleansers, better protect the home against bacterial contamination. However, the company is still in the early phases of bringing their products to market; until then, read more about Biosignal at www.biosignal.com.au.



Flow of ideas

As Kasey Ince-Arnold tells it, seaweed also played a part in the formation of engineering research and development firm PAX Scientific. Growing up in Western Australia, company founder Jay Harman spent a lot of time swimming in the ocean and, as a result, noticed how seaweed easily rips when pulled, yet stays intact in the roughest of tides. To survive the force of the waves, Harman observed, seaweed changes shape, twisting itself into a spiral that allows water to flow through it with minimal resistance. "So he reasoned, if the seaweed is changing shape like that," said Ince-Arnold, director of communications for PAX Scientific, "then the spiral is a very streamlined form in which water is moving." In fact, ubiquitous in nature, spirals can be found in everything from storms and tornadoes to seashells and even our skin pores—basically, they're how nature flows, be it liquid or gas.

PAX Scientific has studied these shapes and is using them to design products that move fluids and air more effectively. To this end, it has translated nature's forms into mathematical algorithms and, with the help of CAD, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and field-testing, has created adaptations to perform man's work with greater efficiency. At present, PAX Scientific has in-house subsidiaries that focus on mixers and water remediation and licenses its fan technology to a separately owned entity, PaxFan. According to Trevor Daughney, VP of sales and marketing for PaxFan, the company is looking at residential refrigerators, where its fans have been shown to consume 25 percent less energy than those currently in use and reduce noise by 3 decibels. As for a quieter and more energy-efficient range hood, PaxFan is in talks with a few companies and has "a couple of things in the works," Daughney said, but don't expect to see any products for at least a year or two. In the meantime, visit www.paxfan.com to learn more about its air movement technologies.



Flexing nature's mussels

While some may already be familiar with Columbia Forest Products' PureBond, they may not know that it, too, is a product of biomimicry. The formaldehyde-free, soy-based adhesive was inspired by the ability of mussels to cling to rocks despite the constant pounding of ocean waves. Kaichang Li, an assistant professor at Oregon State University's College of Forestry, seized upon the idea of emulating the mollusk's "glue" when, during a crabbing trip to the Oregon coast, he was struck by its resistance to water—an important quality for adhesives used in plywood and wood products. Because mussels attach themselves with a network of amino protein threads, Li and his team decided to replicate the adhesive by blending protein-rich soy flour with the same amino acids used by the shellfish. Columbia Forest Products offered to fund Li's research after its current director of technology, Steve Pung, attended his presentation to the Forest Products Society. "We figured that if we can do this without formaldehyde, we should," said John McIsaac, director of communications.

The decision to do so ended up being a smart one. Not only does PureBond outperform traditional adhesives in strength and water resistance, its cost is comparable. In addition, McIsaac noted, "California just passed very strict regulations for formaldehyde emissions in composite wood products that will go into effect in 2009, and we already meet their longest-term regulations." And for the consumer, the only noticeable difference is, perhaps, its lack of smell. Currently, the company is marketing and selling the PureBond "recipe" to competitors as well as other composite makers in the industry. For more information on PureBond, visit www.columbiaforestproducts.com.

With millions of species to consult, other biomimetic products are sure to make their way into our homes in the future. And as the design industry continues its push to make green design an integral part of good practice, that nature has no shortage of role models is perhaps a comforting thought. As Benyus noted, "We don't have to make this up." To learn more about biomimicry, visit www.biomimicry.net.

—Alice Liao