Mississippi-based sustainable material development company Bloom has found a way to convert the often unpleasant and slimy looking (but pretty resourceful) algae into a type of eco-friendly foam that can be used to manufacture yoga mats, shoes, and even luggage.
The company wants to provide a "high algae-content alternative to petroleum-derived flexible foams that dominate the market today." Using the abundant natural supply of algae, a nonfood resource, the company notes it can forgo the use of pesticides in manufacturing and balance algae-ridden ecosystems to prevent blooms from blocking sunlight that limits food supply for fish. Algae is abundant worldwide, which ensures a consistent supply. "Through our collaboration with algae water treatment partners, and our Algent operations, Bloom is able to source the algae biomass needed to offset a large amount of nonrenewable petroleum use in our flexible foams," the company notes.
The process itself entails the accumulation, draining, and drying of the algae, after which it is converted into polymer-like pellets and mixed with other materials (mostly recycled content) to create Bloom's flexible foam. The purpose of the foam's usage also dictates the concentration of algae it will possess, ranging anywhere between 15 percent and 60 percent.
The company is scheduled to begin production some time next year. It is a joint venture of Algix LLC, a producer of algae bio-products, and Effekt LLC, an environmentally minded product and material development company.
