Concrete Mix Inspired by Oysters

Innovation: Industry

GROW Oyster Reefs

2021

Image: Toan Chu / Unsplash / CC BY SA - Creative Commons Attribution + ShareAlike

Maintain Biodiversity

The greater the amount of genetic and species variation in an ecosystem, the more resilient that ecosystem is to disturbances. Variation in ecosystems across the Earth also contributes to the Earth’s resilience to unpredictable changes. This variation is called biodiversity. Because living systems compete with each other for scarce resources, maintaining biodiversity involves creating conditions for a large variety of species to successfully co-occur and reproduce. For example, within a wetland, there are different vegetation types. This diversity results in a complex mosaic of microenvironments as the vegetation types alter air flows, light regimes, and water temperatures and chemistry. Because organisms vary in their ideal environmental conditions, these micro-environments increase the diversity of plants in the wetland. In turn, having a wetland in an otherwise dry area increases biodiversity at an even larger scale.

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Control Erosion and Sediment

Ecosystems must maintain their soils on site and prevent it from being washed away. Organic matter, minerals, and other nutrients in soil support organisms from microorganisms to the largest mammals. But because of the pull of gravity, water flows unless impeded. Therefore, the presence and actions of many, diverse organisms hold soils in place and slow water to allow sediments to settle out rather than be washed downhill. For example, in forests, downed logs that fall crossways to the slope efficiently slow water flow, trapping soils carried by the water and causing water to soak into the soil. In areas lacking logs and other structures, water can flow so fast that it cuts into the soil, causing erosion that washes the soil away.

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Physically Assemble Structure

Living systems use physical materials to create structures to serve as protection, insulation, and other purposes. These structures can be internal (within or attached to the system itself), such as cell membranes, shells, and fur. They can also be external (detached), such as nests, burrows, cocoons, or webs. Because physical materials are limited and the energy required to gather and create new structures is costly, living systems must use both conservatively. Therefore, they optimize the structures’ size, weight, and density. For example, weaver birds use two types of vegetation to create their nests: strong, a few stiff fibers and numerous thin fibers. Combined, they make a strong, yet flexible, nest. An example of an internal structure is a bird’s bone. The bone is comprised of a mineral matrix assembled to create strong cross-supports and a tubular outer surface filled with air to minimize weight.

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Patents

WO2016172058A2
1.1 MB PDF

GROW Oyster Reefs encourages growth of oyster reefs to restore coastlines.

Benefits

Improved biodiversity
Reduced coastline erosion

Applications

Coastline infrastructure

UN Sustainable Development Goals Addressed

Goal 9: Industry Innovation & Infrastructure
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities & Communities
Goal 14: Life Below Water

The Challenge

Coastlines worldwide are threatened by the impact of climate change. The oyster, a keystone species, has declined by 85% since the 1850’s and has been protecting the world’s coastlines for thousands of years. GROW Oyster Reefs products work with the oyster to build self-healing coastal defense infrastructures, attenuating wave energy and sequestering carbon.

Innovation Details

Oysters are critical to maintaining healthy coastlines. They clean the water and create reefs that protect from ocean swells. To help revitalize oyster populations, GROW Oyster Reefs has created proprietary concrete mixes that are chemically similar to oyster shells, and micro- and macro-designs that attract and retain healthy oyster populations. By working with nature to restore coastal ecosystems, GROW’s products enable long-lasting habitat restoration.

Watch how Grow Oyster Reefs learned from and works with nature to restore coastal ecosystems.

Biological Model

Human buildings are uniform structures because we design elements like bricks to fit together perfectly. But oysters build amorphous reefs out of their irregular shells that climb from the ocean floor up rocks and seawalls. The irregular structure of an oyster reef shields a complex inner world of crevices, fissures, and gaps that develop from the oysters’ nonuniformity. Larvae find protection within these “interstitial folds,” where calmer waters exert weaker stresses, allowing them to attach to reefs more easily and live longer.

EXPLORE THIS BIOLOGICAL STRATEGY

Biological Strategy

Oyster Reef Shapes Create Safe Havens for Their Young

Eastern oyster

Uneven, complex oyster reefs create protective crevices where calm waters allow larvae to attach and thrive.

Ray of Hope Prize

The Ray of Hope Prize® celebrates nature-inspired solutions addressing the world’s biggest environmental and sustainability challenges. Created in honor of Ray C. Anderson, founder of Interface, Inc. and a business and sustainability leader, the $100,000 Ray of Hope Prize helps startups cross a critical threshold in becoming viable businesses by amplifying their stories and providing them with equity-free funding. The prize shines a light on the innovative, nature-inspired solutions that we need to build a sustainable and resilient world. GROW Oyster Reefs was selected as a finalist for the 2021 Ray of Hope Prize.

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