Editing Mycelium (section)

==== Mechanical properties ====

Three separate fungi species (''Colorius versicolor'', ''Trametes ochracea'', and ''[[Ganoderma sessile]]'') were mixed independently with 2 [[Substrate (chemistry)|substrates]] (apple and vine) and tested under separate incubation conditions in order to quantify certain mechanical properties of mycelium. In order to do this, samples were grown in molds, incubated, and dried over the course of 12 days. Samples were tested for water absorption using [https://www.astm.org/c0272_c0272m-18.html ASTM C272] guidelines and compared against an [[Polystyrene|EPS]] material. Tiles of uniform size were cut from the fabricated mold and put under an Instron 3345 machine going at 1&nbsp;mm/min, up until 20% deformation.<ref name="Attias">{{Cite journal | vauthors = Attias N, Danai O, Abitbol T, Tarazi E, Ezov N, Pereman I, Grobman YJ |date=2020-02-10 |title=Mycelium bio-composites in industrial design and architecture: Comparative review and experimental analysis |journal=Journal of Cleaner Production |language=en |volume=246 |pages=119037 |doi=10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119037 |bibcode=2020JCPro.24619037A |s2cid=210283849 |issn=0959-6526}}</ref>

Throughout a 4 stage process, the impact of various substrate and fungal mixes was investigated along with properties of mycelium such as density, water absorption, and compressive strength. Samples were separated into two separate incubation methods and inspected for differences in color, texture, and growth. For the same fungi within each incubation method, minimal differences were recorded. However, across disparate substrate mixtures within the same fungi, colorization and external growth varied between the test samples. While loss of organic matter was calculated, no uniform correlation was found between substrate used and chemical properties of the material. For each of the substrate-fungi mixtures, average densities ranged from 174.1&nbsp;kg/m<sup>3</sup> to 244.9&nbsp;kg/m<sup>3</sup>, with the Ganoderma sessile fungi and apple substrate combination being the most dense. Compression tests revealed the Ganoderma sessile fungi and vine substrate to have the highest strength of the samples tested, but no numerical value was provided.<ref name="Attias" /> For reference, surrounding literature has provided a ballpark estimate of 1-72 kPa. Beyond this, mycelium has a thermal conductivity of 0.05–0.07W/m·K which is less than that of typical concrete.<ref>{{Cite journal | vauthors = Yang Z, Zhang F, Still B, White M, Amstislavski P |date=2017-07-01 |title=Physical and Mechanical Properties of Fungal Mycelium-Based Biofoam |journal=Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering |language=en |volume=29 |issue=7 |pages=04017030 |doi=10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001866 |issn=0899-1561}}</ref>