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A plastics-free future doesn't seem possible, but we are seeing manufacturers cutting their percentage of plastic use by combining it with more natural, non-petroleum-based materials. As one example, Japanese toymaker Bandai is using Limex, an injection-moldable mixture of polystyrene and limestone. Now Italian design studio Krill Design is launching Ohmie, a lamp 3D-printed from discarded orange peels and an unspecified "biopolymeric base." They claim the resultant material is "fully compostable."
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The form of the lamp itself is sculptural and visually interesting, vaguely recalling a bust. It's pleasant enough to look at, if a bit odd.
What's got me scratching my head is how they achieved the contrasting surface textures; you can clearly see the printed layer striations on the inside, yet on the outside they've convincingly achieved an orange peel texture.
The Ohmie has been successfully Kickstarted, with 28 days left to pledge at press time. Buy-in starts at €72 (USD $86), and they're expect to ship by November.
I’m a lapsed industrial designer. I was born in NYC and figured I’d die there, but a few years ago I abandoned New York to live on a farm in the countryside with my wife. We have six dogs.
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Another Plastic Reduction Technique: 3D Printing Using Orange Peels
I'd like an avocado lamp, please. XD
My guess for the "biopolymeric base" is chitosan. I'm more curious as to how they made it orange again, as most orange peel materials just end up looking a drab brown.