Mycelium, as the root of fungi, is composed of filamentous strands of fine hyphae that bind discrete substrate particles into a block material. With advanced processing, dense mycelium-bound composites (DMCs) resembling commercial particleboards can be formed. However, their mechanical properties and performance under the working conditions of particleboards are unknown. Here, we show how weathering conditions affect the DMC stress and elastic modulus. DMC was made usingGanoderma lucidummycelium grown on a substrate of sawdust and empty fruit bunch. The DMC was then subjected to weathering under tropical conditions over 35 days and tested under flexural, tensile, and compressive loading with reference to international standards. After exposure to specified weathering conditions, the maximum stress in flexure, tension, and compression decreased substantially. The addition of a protective coating improved the resistance of DMC to weathering conditions; however, the difference between coated and uncoated samples was only found to be statistically significant in tensile strength.

The demand for building materials has been constantly increasing, which leads to excessive energy consumption for their provision. The looming environmental consequences have triggered the search for sustainable alternatives. Mycelium, as a rapidly renewable, low-carbon natural material that can withstand compressive forces and has inherent acoustic and fire-resistance properties, could be a potential solution to this problem. However, due to its low tensile, flexural and shear strength, mycelium is not currently widely used commercially in the construction industry. Therefore, this research focuses on improving the structural performance of mycelium composites for interior use through custom robotic additive manufacturing processes that integrate continuous wood fibers into the mycelial matrix as reinforcement. This creates a novel, 100% bio-based, wood-veneer-reinforced mycelium composite. As base materials, Ganoderma lucidum and hemp hurds for mycelium growth and maple veneer for reinforcement were pre-selected for this study. Compression, pull-out, and three-point bending tests comparing the unreinforced samples to the veneer-reinforced samples were performed, revealing improvements on the bending resistance of the reinforced samples. Additionally, the tensile strength of the reinforcement joints was examined and proved to be stronger than the material itself. The paper presents preliminary experiment results showing the effect of veneer reinforcements on increasing bending resistance, discusses the potential benefits of combining wood veneer and mycelium’s distinct material properties, and highlights methods for the design and production of architectural components.

The increasing generation of waste is a global challenge with particularly severe impacts in Southeast Asia, where agricultural and industrial lignocellulosic residues are often underutilized or inadequately managed. Major waste streams include sugarcane bagasse, Albizia chinensis woodchips, and cassava pulp. This study demonstrates that these abundant residues can be effectively valorized as feedstocks for the production of high-performance mycelium-based composite materials with an average density of approximately 365 kg/m ³ . Sugarcane bagasse and Albizia chinensis woodchips serve as effective base substrates supporting stable mycelial growth of Ganoderma lucidum , while cassava pulp functions as a nutrient-rich carbohydrate supplement that influences composite microstructure and mechanical performance. Albizia woodchip substrates supplemented with cassava pulp exhibited the highest compressive strength, reaching 0.63 MPa at 5% strain. These findings demonstrate that substrate composition plays a key role in determining the microstructure and mechanical performance of mycelium composites, providing a viable pathway for transforming underutilized lignocellulosic waste into functional bio-based materials.

In the coming decades, the use of finite and ever-scarcer primary materials will become more and more difficult, and especially more expensive. In the EU Taxonomy, the European Union stipulates that, in order to benefit from public funding, buildings must reduce their primary-materials footprint by 50 % by the year 2030 and even by 75 % by the year 2050. The intention is to replace these sources of primary raw materials with so-called secondary materials, especially with renewable raw materials. However, because land within the EU is already being used very intensively for forestry and food production, increasing scrutiny is falling on other fields involving production independent of location using organic waste materials and fungi to grow new types of building materials. This type of growth requires few resources and can take place without use of land in existing, repurposed facilities of all kinds, such as old industrial buildings or infrastructure facilities like mining shafts.