Material Library System for Circular Economy: Tangible-Intangible Interaction for Recycled Composite Materials

Abstract

Currently the development of new circular materials has brought up the necessity to transfer their knowledge amongst the interested stakeholders for their real exploitation. This chapter aims to illustrate the design of a physical and virtual library system of the FiberEUse project. In particular, this library system wants to foster the development of new applications and value chains through the showcase of the new recycled composite materials and archetypal remanufactured products developed during the project. After the definition of the system concept, specific taxonomies were designed for the physical and virtual parts considering the technical properties and the expressive-sensorial qualities of the new recycled materials and products. A hierarchical organization was then designed to allow both tangible and intangible interactions with the samples, resulting in a coherent experience to explore these new recycled materials. Meanwhile, the physical exhibitors and the library website were developed to collect the physical and virtual samples. At the end, the whole system will be freely accessible through the library website and by booking a visit to the physical part. Thanks to its transdisciplinary nature, this system can stimulate the real exploitation of new value chains and applications.

Speculative tinkering on circular design materials through 3D printing

“…The experiential tool developed within FiberEUse widens the concept of materials libraries by including materials samples, new products, possible applications, textual and non-textual content. The "Materials and product library system" is divided into two main parts, the Physical Library and Virtual Library, merging the concepts of tangible/virtual fruition, as well as local/distributed use (Romani et al, 2022). This tool can be used during the different phases of the design process, making more accessible the knowledge of emerging materials and technologies through flat samples, cutoffs, pictures, renderings, and numerical data.…”

“…Each sample of this section is then part of a specific tetrahedral structure, and it is represented by four different coordinates, one for each selected variable of the specific spatial structure. For instance, a sample of the structure "3D printed glass fibers" has a defined layer height, number of perimeters, surface finishing, and shape complexity, corresponding to the four variables at the tetrahedron vertex (Romani et al, 2022). Hence, the system allows to showcase and compare different combinations of the four variables, showing more possibilities in terms of new applications to envision.…”

Dissolving distances: Designing close-to-body experiences for remote settings

“…To better spread their knowledge and foster new practical collaborations, a Materials Library has been designed to include all the solutions from the project. In detail, the original concept of materials libraries has been reconsidered, defining a new experiential tool that includes a physical and virtual experience with materials and products (Romani et al, 2022). This tool, a "materials and product library system," aims to collect materials samples and new products, applications, and other non-textual content.…”

“…The taxonomy of the Physical Product Library was designed to create different three-dimensional structures, one for each combination of material and manufacturing technology, where each sample is defined with a coordinate system and a position. This four-variable spatial taxonomy allows linking a set of variables, i.e., finishing, shape complexity, and process parameters, to a specific spatial position, facilitating comparisons and assessment amongst different parts (Romani et al, 2022).…”