Method of producing a chitinous polymer derived from fungal mycelium
The process of growing a homogeneous polymer matrix comprising the steps of growing a viable mycelium in a liquid suspension; extracting mycelium from the liquid suspension; thereafter incubating the mycelium for a period of time sufficient to induce mycelium cohesion and to form a solid material; and thereafter drying the solid material to remove moisture and to inactivate the mycelium.
1. A process of producing a homogeneous polymer matrix comprising the steps of
growing a viable mycelium in a liquid suspension;
extracting mycelium from the liquid suspension;
thereafter incubating the mycelium for a period of time sufficient to induce mycelium cohesion and to form a solid homogeneous mass of mycelial chitin; and
thereafter drying the solid material to remove moisture and to inactivate the mycelium.
2. A process as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of growing includes growing mycelium on a scaffold immersed within said liquid suspension.
3. A process as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of drying includes applying a salt solution to the solid material to impart electrical conductivity thereto.
4. A process as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of drying includes adding NAOH to the solid material to impart an anti-fungal characteristic thereto.
5. A process as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of extracting includes removing fragments of mycelium from the liquid suspension.
6. A process as set forth in claim 5 wherein said fragments are combined into a cohesive whole of three dimensional shape.
7. A process as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of growing includes growing mycelium across the surface of a nutrient rich fluid to form a sheet.
8. A process as set forth in claim 7 further comprising the step of placing a scaffold in contact with said sheet to allow mycelium to colonize said scaffold.
9. A process as set forth in claim 7 wherein said step of extracting includes removing the sheet from the nutrient rich fluid in continuous form.
10. A process as set forth in claim 7 wherein said step of extracting includes passing a porous membrane material through the liquid suspension to allow mycelium to adhere and grow along the membrane material.
11. A process as set forth in claim 7 wherein said step of extracting includes removing the sheet from the nutrient rich fluid.
12. A process as set forth in claim 11 further comprising the steps of obtaining a plurality of said sheets, stacking said sheets and reanimating the mycelium of said sheets to fuse said sheets together to form a cohesive whole.
13. A process as set forth in claim 12 wherein said step of stacking said sheets includes interposing a plurality of textiles in alternating manner with said sheets.
14. A process as set forth in claim 12 wherein said step of incubating includes incubating said stacked sheets in an environment of 90% relative humidity and at a temperature of 86° F. for three days.
15. A process as set forth in claim 11 further comprising the steps of removing a plurality of cutouts of predetermined shape from said sheet, stacking said cutouts and reanimating the mycelium of said cutouts to fuse said cutouts together to form a cohesive whole.
16. A process as set forth in claim 15 further comprising the step of adding glycol to said stack of cutouts to plasticize the mycelium.
17. A process of producing a homogeneous polymer matrix comprising the steps of
growing a viable mycelium across the surface of a nutrient rich fluid in a liquid suspension to form a sheet of mycelium;
extracting the sheet of mycelium from the liquid suspension;
thereafter incubating the sheet of mycelium for a period of time sufficient to induce mycelium cohesion and to form a solid homogeneous mass of mycelial chitin; and
thereafter drying the solid material to remove moisture and to inactivate the mycelium.
18. A process as set forth in claim 17 further comprising the steps of
obtaining a plurality of said sheets, stacking said sheets and reanimating the mycelium of said sheets to fuse said sheets together to form a cohesive whole.
19. A process as set forth in claim 17 wherein said step of extracting includes passing a porous membrane material through the liquid suspension to allow mycelium to adhere and grow along the membrane material.
20. A process of producing a homogeneous polymer matrix comprising the steps of
growing a viable mycelium in a liquid suspension;
extracting fragments of mycelium from the liquid suspension;
combining said fragments into a cohesive whole of bulk three dimensional shape;
thereafter incubating the cohesive whole for a period of time sufficient to induce mycelium cohesion and to form a solid homogeneous mass of mycelial chitin; and
thereafter drying the solid material to remove moisture and to inactivate the mycelium.