Can We Make Termite Resistant Houses of Chicken Feathers?
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 08. 4.08
A termite resistant building board made from a composite of chicken feathers and compressed cement. This is the dream of Dr. Menandro N. Acda from the Dept. of Forest Products and Paper Science, College of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of the Philippines Los Banos.
Professor Acda is quoted as saying his composite boards, which he hopes to have perfected by the end of the year, would be "resistant to insect infestation such as termites because the feathers are inedible," as well as suggesting they’d be less flammable and combustible when compared to conventional cement and wood-fibre composite boards.
Seems like he has plenty of raw material to work with given that the Philippines poultry industry is said to dump 2.4 million tonnes of feathers annually, mostly through burning and burial. It will, he suggests also reduce the volume of waste feathers being converted to animal feed, which might otherwise be a contributor to bird flu.
Apparently the feathers when used as wood chip replacement create a board suitable for “for paneling, ceilings and as insulation but not for weight-bearing building components like walls or pillars.”
The research has been funded by which is funded by the Ford Conservation and Environmental Grants programme, hence the above pic of Ford Motor Company Philippines President Rick Baker, from the APF article.
See also Alternative Use for Chicken Feathers:
• Chicken Feathers as Computer Circuit Boards
• Chicken Feathers as Fashion Fabrics
• Chicken Feathers and Soy as BioPlastics
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That's interesting... I remember seeing somewhere about a university making motherboards for computers from feathers and soybeans, too.
It is an interesting answer but there are already lots of ecological materials with high acustic and temperature insulation performance that don't require cement composites for rigidity and mass.
Cork, Hemp and Coconut Fiber boards have excelent insulation abilities, are fully organic, support sustainable ecosystems (except hemp), they are lighter and cork is consistently fire and water proof. But this appears as a more solid solution for a broader range of uses so congrats to the researchers.
Sounds like a bad idea to me... chicken feathers? blah...
even if there are excess feathers, this would further support the factory chicken farms we have by dumping even more money into the industry.
It would be nice if the research was spent searching for a synthetic alternative. In the long run, I suspect a synthetic or a plant based alternative would be a greener solution.
Wait... the feathers are inedible to termites, but they end up in chicken feed? Surprising.
It looks like the dear Dr. has a relationship to Ford Mo Co. or at least a fondness.
Thinking outside the box! The greatest achievements in history have come from great minds with great imaginations.
Know nothing is impossible, kudos to you!
Seems to me that chicken feather composites solve more than one problem!
poor chickens...
I don't think finding another way for the most polluting industry in the world (animal agriculture) to make money is that great of an idea. There are non-animal based alternatives I'm sure.