Cob walls are like the adobe home's British cousin. Take nearly the same materials but add in a much higher proportion of straw, and you have cob. Though it brings corn cobs to mind, "cob" comes ...

When properly designed, constructed, and maintained, Nilsson and others say, cob homes have proven to last many centuries. “Cob uses the same materials as adobe,” says Hammer. “But adobe walls are ...

Cob is never fired and hardens by drying, which can be a long process. Walls are constructed by layering cob material while still wet, with the bottom stiffening while the walls are slowly being ...

Ancient building material cob has been brought up to contemporary standards by a team of British and French researchers, who see it as an environmentally friendly option for homes. The team, led ...

Although not illegal anywhere, a person looking to use cob in the U.S. must get a permit, which can be difficult given the general lack of knowledge surrounding the material. To combat these ...

Editor's note: Pictures 4-8 courtesy of naturalhomes.org. Forget about the usual building materials such as concrete, vinyl siding or pink foam insulation when it comes to Paulina Wojciechowska's ...

Flat House, a Material Cultures three-bedroom house situated at Margent Farm, a rural R&D facility that develops bioplastics made with hemp and flax. Timber and hempcrete are among the materials used.

In tests, the residual cob material was even more absorbent than the commercial product. And because the material still contains anthocyanins, which have antimicrobial activity, ...

Finally, when the remaining ground cob material was tested, it was said to be even more absorbent than the corn cob waste presently used in commercial kitty litter.

Used purple corn cob litter could also be composted along with other organic matter, resulting in no waste, they explain. For more of the latest research news, register for our upcoming meeting ...