Living Wall Breakthrough
Scientists unveiled a ‘living wall’ material that can grow, repair its own cracks and capture atmospheric carbon — a potential game-changer for sustainable façades and carbon capture in buildings []. Researchers say the biohybrid material self-heals and breathes, offering a radical alternative to conventional concrete if scaled [].
An interdisciplinary team led by Professor Mark Tibbitt at ETH Zurich published) a Nature Communications paper on June 21, 2025 describing the photosynthetic living material. The composite embeds Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 cyanobacteria in a Pluronic F‑127–based hydrogel that the authors made extrusion 3D‑printable and photo‑crosslinkable reported). Laboratory measurements recorded 2.2 ± 0.9 mg CO₂ sequestered per gram of hydrogel in the first 30 days and a cumulative 26 ± 7 mg/g after roughly 400 days, results the team attributed to combined biomass growth and microbially induced carbonate precipitation measured). Large‑format printed objects using the material were exhibited at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale and the Milan Triennale as part of the Picoplanktonics installations, where on‑site caretakers managed light, humidity and nutrient regimes shown). Characterization data showed the fresh hydrogel transmitted about 76 ± 3% of visible light (dropping after bacterial encapsulation), printed pieces were soft initially but became free‑standing after ~30 days, and the authors reported periodic nutrient replacement to maintain viability over the ~400‑day incubation window data).
