Abstract
Buildings cannot be designed for permanence. Its materials and construction system may be long-lasting, but building uses are always exhaustive. At the end of the building lifespan, non degradable materials remain in the landfill. To reduce material and construction waste, design needs to consider the end of life in a product as much as the creation of it. What if architecture can be designed to be constantly revived and reused? This thesis presents a construction strategy for interlocking mycelium composites as replaceable structural modules that could be periodically replaced, extending the lifespan while varying the architecture. The methodology is derived from concepts of discrete element assembly, implemented for biocompatible materials. The research was carried out in two scales; (a) at the scale of the ‘part’ such as foundation, column, beam, joint, and floor slab component, which would be studied to form a set of interlocking geometry that allow for easy installation and de-installation process; and (b) an investigation on aggregating ‘whole’, whereby elements are aggregated using Wasp to generate bays of walls, flooring and cantilever roof.