Ecovative Design LLC

Lucy Elaine Greetham

Gavin Reim McIntyre

Eben Bayer

Ian Bonesteel

Jacob Michael Winiski

Alex Carlton

Sarah Araldi

Jessica Kaplan-Bie

Jessie Hannah Kaplan-Bie

A mycological biopolymer material is subjected to treatment in one or more solutions that work to enhance and/or retain the inherent material properties of the material. In one embodiment, the solution is an organic solution; in another embodiment, the solution is an organic solvent with a salt; in another embodiment, the solution is an organic solvent phenol and/or polyphenol; and in another embodiment, a series of such solutions is used.

Solution based post-processing methods for mycological biopolymer material and mycological product made thereby

A mycological biopolymer product consisting entirely of fungal mycelium is made by inoculating a nutritive substrate with a selected fungus in a sealed environment except for a void space, which space is subsequently filled with a network of undifferentiated fungal mycelium. The environmental conditions for producing the mycological biopolymer product, i.e. a high carbon dioxide (CO) content (from 5% to 7% by volume) and an elevated temperature (from 85&#xb0; F. to 95&#xb0; F.), prevent full differentiation of the fungus into a mushroom. There are no stipe, cap, or spores produced. The biopolymer product grows into the void space of the tool, filling the space with an undifferentiated mycelium chitin-polymer, which is subsequently extracted from the substrate and dried.

Mycological biopolymers grown in void space tooling

The method of growing a biopolymer material employs incubation of a growth media comprised of nutritive substrate and a fungus in containers that are placed in a closed incubation chamber with air flows passed over each container while the chamber is maintained with a predetermined environment of humidity, temperature, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The air flows may be directed parallel or perpendicularly to the surfaces of the growth media.

Increased homogeneity of mycological biopolymer grown into void space

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South Hero, VT, United States of America

Lucy Elaine Greetham