Biomimetics of stabilized earth construction: Challenges and opportunities

This state-of-the-art paper is based on the premise that skin vasculature holds several important clues on how energy-efficiency could be accomplished in indoor environments. It is also based on the premise that stabilized earth, which has been extensively used throughout the world as a construction material, could be engineered to mimic the evolutionary developments in biology. The paper begins with a summary of recent developments in plant physiology and skin vasculature, and applies these developments in the context of stabilized earth construction. A number of interdisciplinary research opportunities are identified for communities engaged in building and energy research. This paper is developed from the proceedings of an international workshop on biomimetics of stabilized earth construction, held in Reading, UK, in March 2011.

► Thermoregulatory behavior of biological systems is reviewed. ► Biomimetics is contextualized to stabilized earth construction. ► Analogies are developed between skin vasculature and stabilized earth materials. ► Research opportunities are identified in biomimetic stabilized earth construction.