Bricks were one of the first man-made building materials materials (the
oldest bricks made from mud have been dated at about 7500 BC).
Throughout the centuries, the method for manufacturing has evolved, but
at it's most basic level, a brick is a mixture of silica, clay, lime, iron oxide and magnesia fired @ 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Designer Jin -Young Yoon took a look at one of
the oldest building materials and came up with the idea of the Save
Water Brick.
The
Save Water Brick is made from recycled plastic and decomposed
leaves.The backside of the brick has funnels designed to direct water
run off to nearby landscaping or to a underground storage tanks.
The
Save Water Brick would definitely have a positive impact on the
environment in other ways than water conservation, it would divert waste
from landfills & support markets for recycled content products.
This is an innovative idea, but there are still some questions that need to be answered:
How
exactly will it be manufactured? Will it use less energy to produce
than bricks on the market today (bricks have an energy intensive
process = more CO2 emissions)? Bricks are relatively inexpensive to
produce (a brick is typically
made of silica, clay, lime, iron oxide and magnesia), how will the Save
Water Brick compare in cost? And most importantly, how does the
performance of the Save Water Brick compare to regular bricks?
I
am interested in seeing how this product develops and if it will be
released on the market. Until then, I hope Yoon keeps cranking out the
great ideas.
