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Are bio-based insulation materials safe enough to scale?

Fire performance is the single largest barrier to scaling biogenic insulation. REGEN research is developing new testing protocols and modelling approaches so bio-based materials can be specified with the same confidence as mineral wool — without forcing them through tests designed for entirely different materials.

Key points

  • Existing fire-test standards were calibrated for mineral and petrochemical materials.
  • Bio-based assemblies behave differently in real fires than in standardised tests.
  • New protocols and modelling are being developed and validated through real assemblies.

Sources

De-risk and scale biogenic construction and renovation solutions, standardise, industrialise, prove performance and replicate through responsible scaling of biogenic materials, fire-risk testing, circular refurbishment platforms.
REGEN — Applied Science Towards a Regenerative Built Environment · BLOXHUB, 2025 · Two-pager · p. 1
Assessing the fire risks of bio-based insulation materials through innovative testing and modeling approaches.
BioFireAssess — Fire Risks of Bio-based Insulation Materials · Patrick Sudhoff, 2025 · PhD proposal

Researchers behind this

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