Sea Glass

Sea Glass is a biobased glass developed through an alternative glassmaking process that replaces mined sand with silica naturally produced by microalgae. Instead of extracting a finite geological resource, the material is grown: microalgae are cultivated, they form silica through their natural biological processes, and this biogenic silica is then used for glass production. The project rethinks the very origin of glass by turning a traditionally extractive material into a cultivated one.

Developed over two years of research and experimentation, Sea Glass explores how microscopic aquatic organisms can be integrated into material production to reduce environmental impact. Microalgae naturally absorb dissolved silicic acid from water and transform it into solid silica as part of their life cycle. By harvesting this silica, glass can be produced without relying on sand extraction, pointing toward a renewable and potentially regenerative raw material source.

This approach responds to two urgent issues: carbon emissions and sand scarcity. Microalgae are key regulators of the global carbon cycle, capturing a large share of global CO₂ through photosynthesis while producing significant amounts of oxygen. Incorporating their cultivation into material production opens the possibility for carbon capture to become an intrinsic part of manufacturing.

At the same time, Sea Glass proposes an alternative to sand, the second most-consumed natural resource after water. Intensive sand mining for glass and concrete damages riverbeds, coastlines, and marine ecosystems, and is often associated with social and political conflicts. Moving from extraction to cultivation helps reduce these pressures. Microalgae can be grown in controlled systems, do not require fertile land, and do not compete with food production, making them adaptable to coastal, urban, or arid environments.

Sea Glass is both a material and a design research proposition. It challenges assumptions about where materials come from and how they are sourced, suggesting a future in which materials are not mined from the earth but grown as part of living systems.