BioLope
Project Overview
University
Year
About
Conventional facades absorb and release solar heat while providing little shelter for birds, bats and pollinators. BioLope uses ecological data and solar modelling to design ceramic elements whose varied depths reduce heating and whose cavities provide habitats for selected species. The elements are 3D printed from local clay containing recycled material. During a heatwave, a Munich prototype remained 16 °C cooler than a conventional facade, demonstrating the potential to reduce urban heat and support biodiversity.
Team
Julia Larikova
Julia’s doctoral research about biodiversity-enabling self-cooling 3d printed ceramic facades creates the core of the technology for the BioLope. She has background in architecture and digital technologies for sustainable construction and currently in her last year of the doctoral research. Alongside completing her doctorate at the Technical University of Munich, she is leading the transition of the research towards a spin-off, with a focus on product development, strategy, and product-market fit.
Laura Windorfer
Laura is an ecologist in the final year of her doctoral research at the Technical University of Munich. Her research focuses on co-habitation between humans and other animals in cities. She contributed to BioLope by defining the ecological guidelines underlying its AI-enabled planning tool and bridging ecological and architectural principles for the automated planning of biodiversity-supporting façades.