Shanghai-based interior design studio RooMoo used around 6,000 pieces of discarded wooden whiskey barrels to create the out- and indoor area of the whiskey bar Lai Zhou Bar. The bar is an offshoot of Lai Zhou Distillery, a Chinese whiskey producer based in the Sichuan province. The building consists of a whisky tasting area, VIP room, bar area, kitchen, bathroom, and outdoor seating area. The wood pieces as well as the barrel rings were used throughout the whole bar. Read more at https://materialdistrict.com/article/a-distillerys-interior-made-of-discarded-distillery-barrels/ #materialinspriation #materials #wood #recycledwood #distillery #reclaimedwood #whiskey #whiskeybarrels #laizhouwdistillery #laizhoubar #roomoo #materialdistrict #interiordesign #facades #architecture

The aggregate material absorbs and stores energy from ambient light (UV rays) during the day, and releases this energy at night, making the particles glow. Starpath by @nevana_designs / More at Materialdistrict.com #materialoftehday #materials #roads #glowinthedark #urbandesign #starpath #nevanadesign #materialdistrict

Researchers at @Stanford University in the US developed insulating paint in multiple colours that can keep buildings cooled in summer and warmer in winter, reducing energy use, costs and greenhouse emissions. The heating and cooling of spaces accounts for about 13 per cent of global energy use, and about 11 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. Other low-emissivity paints usually have a metallic silver or grey colour, which limits their use aesthetically. The new paint works with two layers that are applied separately. The first one is an infrared reflective bottom layer using aluminium flakes. The second one is an ultra-thin, infrared transparent upper layer, made with inorganic nanoparticles that come in many colours. Read more at MaterialDistrict.com #materialinspiration #materials #paints #insulation #energytransition #stanforduniversity #materialdistrict

An organic photochromic colourant that changes colour reversibly and repeatedly. Photopia Ink by @Matsuicolor / More at MaterialDistrict.com #materialoftheday #materials #coatings #fabric #photochromic #colourchanging #matsui #photopia #materialdistrict

These concrete building blocks are partly translucent, due to added glass or polymer elements that let light through. Licrete by @Licrete / More at MaterialDistrict.com #materialoftheday #materials #concrete #translucency #glass #polymers #licrete #materialdistrict

Canadian architectural form @Provencher_Roy used concrete with incorporated locally sourced recycled glass to reduce the carbon footprint of two bridges. The new bridges replace the Darwin Bridges on Nuns’ Island in Montreal, which had served for 60 years. The new ones were built using cast-in-place concrete. In the mixture, 10 per cent ground recycled glass (ground glass pozzolan or GGP) was used, to replace part of the cement as a binder. Read more at MaterialDistrict.com #materailinspiration #concrete #recycledglass #ggpconcrete #ggp #groundglasspozzolan #darwinbridges #ProvencherRoy #archiecture #urbanarchitecture #bridges #materialdistrict

Called the iGreen cover, the iPhone case by retail @iGreenGadgets is made of a compostable material that contains seeds, and can be planted after use. The vast majority of phone cases is made from various types of usually petrol-based plastic, often mixed types, which cannot be effectively recycled or reused, as each phone has a different size and shape. The iGreen cover is the result of two years of materials research and development. The resulting material is based on cornstarch and provides strength and flexibility needed to protect the phone. Read more at MaterialDistrict.com #materialinspiration #bioplastic #iphone #iphonepro15 #iphonepro14 #iphonepro13 #phonecase #iphonecase #cornstarch #seeds #igreencover #igreengadgets #materialdistrict #compostableplastic

By using natural fibres and a bio-resin, instead of petroleum-based resin, a biobased composite is created with a very low CO2 footprint. Nabasco by NPSP / More at MaterialDistrict.com #materialoftheday #materials #facades #nabasco #npsp #biobasedmaterials #biocomposites #materialdistrict