starch

SOIL

WHAT IS MY CONNECTION TO SOIL?

the biggest connection I have found is with the relationship I have with my food. every day I am eating I am indirectly connected to the soil.

THE POTATO

For me, the potato is maybe the most closely connected with the soil. The potato, which is widely consumed, is strongly intertwined to Dutch food culture and history, and has left its stamp to this day.

INTERESTING PROCESO LINKED TO THE POTATO

Just like the soil, a potato can also oxidize

THE POTATO IS 70% WATER 20% STARCH

DRYING THE POTATO

FORMING OF THE MATERIAL

grating the potato first and pressing it into small pieces releases a lot of moisture because you break the cell structure the starch forms a glue along with the water and holds the other parts together. You can also clearly see that the mixture discolors (oxidizes).

IS IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE BIO PLASTIC FROM POTATOES?

THE POTATO

FURTHER EXPERIMENT

IS IT POSSIBLE TO CAST A THICKER MATERIAL?

it is quite difficult to cast a thicker material this is because the material consists largely of water once this water disappears it shrinks this causes cracks

IS THE MATERIAL RELEASING ON PLASTER?

because most of the material is water and plaster soaks up water, plaster is a pretty good way to get the material dry in a short time.

SODA POTATO MATERIAL

Can I use starch to make other material?

USING A SUPPORT MATERIAL TO PREVENT SHRINKAGE

to prevent the material from shrinking you can add another material that does not shrink such as sand or textile.

GROW THE MATERIAL?

When you heat starch a lot of sugars are released I figured out that yeasts thrive on sugar they convert the sugars into Co2. if I make sure the material reaches its solid form the moment the yeast saturates I can put a hard sponge-like structure in the material.

When i create a new material, as a designer i also have the spaces to think how this material should feel and should smell.

Is it a bad thing that the material dissolves in water?

THE PROCESS OF MAKING THE MATERIAL

So far I have still heated the material by burning gas which is a bit disappointing to me. I am producing a material where the welfare of the earth is an important consideration and I am still using a technique that I know is not doing the earth any good. Could I design a production process where only the energy I put into it?

Could I use my own energy to make the material?

Can I heat in an altanative way?

What could be the justification of this material? Or am I creating a new problem now?

unbleached cotton

5gram glycerol
60gram water
5 gram vinegar
10 gram starch

felt

7gram glycerol
300gram water
20 gram vinegar
12 gram starch

sand

7gram glycerol
300gram water
20 gram vinegar
12 gram starch

5gram glycerol
60gram water
10 gram vinegar
10 gram starch

yeast culture

40 gram flour
7 gram yeast
50gram water

50gram water
2,5 ml vinegar
0,5. glycerol
5 gram starch

5gram glycerol
60gram water
5 gram vinegar
10 gram starch

5gram glycerol
120gram water
5 gram vinegar
10 gram starch

slip casting?

material in the mold

material 15 min in the mold

material 30 min in the mold

material in the oven at 200c for 30min

By baking the material in the oven first, I hope to quickly evaporate all the moisture from the mixture. by allowing the water to evaporate quickly without the air structure disappearing from the mixture, I hope to maintain a hard sponge-like structure.

material in the oven at 200c for 30min

in the first 10min a sheet formed on the top surface of the mixture the rest of the mixture had sunk fairly to the bottom what caused this I don't know exactly. it can be that it still took too long for it to get into a solid phase and the mixture can sink in.

FREEZE THE MATERIAL FIRST

by first freezing the material I hope to delay the moment the material collapses

material in the oven at 200c for 30min

material after drying

INJECTION OF THE MATERIAL

If you let the mixture dry for a few minutes before using it, it hardly adheres to plastic which makes it perfect for filling a syringe. this gives the material even more possibilities and applications.

coffee

7gram glycerol
300gram water
20 gram vinegar
12 gram starch

USE AS A BINDER

heat water by stirring?

when you stir water very fast you create friction if you were to stir very fast you would have to heat the water.

heating by weight?

if I lift a weight and lower it slowly and drive a dynamo with it I create energy.

You could say that starch has been used as a binder. If you add a material to the mixture, it becomes stronger, but it also prevents it from shrinking. I explored the possibilities of adding material to the same starch mixture as before and ended up with strong and rigid sampels that didn’t shrink. With these samples, we can see how versatile the strach can be and how it could become a medium to design a system with.

carbon winding?

the samples are super strong this actually surprises me. somewhere it is unimaginable that it hardens so quickly and yet the material is soluble in water.

the use of fibres in the process?
so far, i have used cotton because that is what i had lying around here. the next step is to see if i can use a fibre that is better for the environment and even better one that comes from my own waste stream.

the material still shrinks around the mould which causes the material to get stuck around the mould. by making my own mould that can move by removing a pin, I hope to get more control over the drying process.

MAKING A NEW MOULD

the new mould works super well. this process keeps the material supported much longer and I keep control over the drying process.

SCALING UP THE PROCESS. AM I ABLE TO MAKE LARGE SHAPES?

swap to other carrier. jute is a much more local fibre. it felt weird to study a sustainable process and not think about the origin of the fibre.

One step further than using a fibre that grows in nature is to make your own fibre, again from my own waste stream. if you look at how fibres are made up in nature, they consist of a protein cells that are dish up one after the other. think of silk from a caterpillar and cobwebs. By creating a similar process myself with a vinegar fungus that also ferments the proteins and forms a net, I want to make a start towards making my own fezel.

GROWING MY OWN FIBRE

USING A WIND TECHNIQUE

on the new mould, I am also able to wind with a "filament" this way I can wind infinitely in theory. The shape of the mould can vary without me getting wrinkles in the material. I can wind loose fibres. I can wind different fibres. By teaching myself this technique of winding (laying layer upon layer), I can experiment even more.

DESIGNING TOOLS

the purpose of the project is to show how special the material is. and a suggestion of how I could use it. For me, it's about the process and the craft. I want to understand how it works and make it my own. I want to understand the process and be able to work with it. To make the process my own, I designed the tools for the wrapping process.

designing a filament tube. The kit canister holds the mixture of starch and runs the spool of thread.

designing a wrapping machiene. recording the process gives me more control over the process. It becomes understandable.

V-1,1

V-2,1

V-2,2

V-2,3

designing a wrapping machiene. recording the process gives me more control over the process. It becomes understandable.

V-2,3

MAKING THE MOLD

first time using the machine. carefully and slowly wrapping the fibres around the mould. immediately new questions come to mind to do follow-up steps.
How does an asymmetric mould work?
How do I get nice patterns? By spending more time with the machine, I can get more control over the craft.

USING THE MACHINE

DOING NEW EXPERIMENTS

new patterns emerge as I get to grips with this craft. crimping is also a problem here, as the starch pulls threads towards it. this creates holes in the end results, causing weak spots in the material. by twisting a pattern and crossing threads, I avoid this problem.

THEORY OF THE PROJECT!

for more background inspiration and way of working.

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