來源于銅制副產品的藝術作品
Studio ThusThat creates objects from "overlooked" byproducts of the copper industry

由專筑網小R編譯

多學科工作室ThusThat將銅用作混凝土的替代品，從而達到低碳的目的，并把這些材料用在“這是銅”家具系列作品中。

這些材料來源于比利時的一家銅廠，“這是銅”系列作品包含有椅子、燈具、鏡子等等。

每件作品的目的都是在展示銅作為混凝土替代品的潛力，在全球二氧化碳的年排放總量中，來自混凝土的排放占了8%。

Multidisciplinary collective Studio ThusThat explored the "invisible" material of copper as a low-carbon alternative to concrete when developing its This is Copper furniture collection.
Made using waste taken from a copper factory in Belgium, This is Copper comprises a series of objects including chairs, lamps and mirrors.
Each piece aims to demonstrate the potential of copper as a more sustainable alternative to cement, the production of which accounts for around eight per cent of global CO2 emissions per year.


工作室利用廢棄銅制作了一系列家居用品，其中包括這張柱子椅子
The studio used waste copper to create a collection of furniture and homeware objects, including this Column Chair

皇家藝術學院（RCA）畢業生Kevin Rouff、Paco Böckelmann、 Guillermo Whittembury共同創立了ThusThat工作室，他們探索了多種工藝，研究展示不同材料的不同特點。

他們關注一種名為礦渣的廢棄材料，這種材料是銅冶煉過程中剩下的雜質。

Royal College of Art (RCA) graduates Kevin Rouff, Paco Böckelmann and Guillermo Whittembury – who make up Studio ThusThat – experimented with various production processes to expose different characteristics and aesthetics of the material.
They focused on one particular waste called slag, which is the leftover impurities of the copper smelting process.


ThusThat工作室應用礦渣制作成細膩的粉末和粗糙的沙狀物質
Studio ThusThat  used slag in a more refined, powdered form and a coarser, sand form

他們應用了礦渣的兩種形式，即沙狀物質和粉末。在其原始的形態中，礦渣看上去就像“發光的黑色砂礫”。

設計師將其熔融，然后倒入水中，遇冷之后會迅速冷卻凝固，從而形成一大塊黑色的固體，然后再破碎成小塊，最后構成大型黑色土堆。

由于煉制過程需要高溫環境，礦渣就能夠變得粉碎，同時通過堿而得到激活。

這會導致內部物質的連鎖反應，從而形成礦物聚合物，這意味著爐渣通過原始形態的結合，然后用作粘合劑和骨料。

設計師說：“它幾乎能完全取代對于混凝土的需求�！�

They used two forms of slag: sand and powder. In its raw form, slag looks "just like sparkly black sand".
It is poured in a molten state – which the designers describe as "man-made lava" – into water where it cools rapidly to form a black, glassy stone before shattering into small glassy pieces. It is then piled up in large, black mounds.
Due to the high temperature of the refining process, the slag is primed at a molecular level in such a way that it can be crushed into a powder and activated by an alkali.
This causes the chain reaction of internal bonds to form – resulting in a geopolymer. This means the slag can be used as both a binder and an aggregate by combining its powder and raw coarser forms.
"It replaces the need for cement entirely," said the designers.


工作室還設計了燈具，很好地表達了銅作為混凝土的低碳替代物的巨大潛力
The project, which also saw the studio create lamps, demonstrates the potential of copper as a low-carbon alternative to concrete

爐渣聚合物在成形的過程中不會釋放二氧化碳，也不會消耗很多水，因此其碳足跡相比較標準混凝土要低大約77%。

另外它還有耐熱性、抗沖擊性、耐腐蝕性、耐酸性等特點，相較于混凝土還有很好的抗壓強度和持久性。

The slag geopolymer does not release CO2 in its formation, nor does it use much water, resulting in a carbon footprint that is around 77 per cent smaller than standard cement.
It also boasts a high resistance to heat and shock, corrosion and acid, as well as a high compressive strength and better durability than cement.


閃耀的黑色座椅放置在一堆銅渣里
The Sparkly Black chair was cast directly into a pile of coarse copper slag

設計團隊和KU Leuven的研究者們共同合作，探索了材料的發展前景，并且通過不同的技術來達到不同的目標和成果。

設計團隊希望能夠在“閃耀的黑色”座椅中探索材料的原始狀態，因此這張椅子直接放置在一堆銅渣里，這類似于傳統的沙模鑄造過程。

Working alongside the researchers of KU Leuven, the team explored how far they could push the material by using various techniques to reap different effects and end results.
They wanted to explore the material in its raw state when making the Sparkly Black chair, which was cast directly into a pile of coarse copper slag – similar to the traditional sand-casting process.


為了制作這張“融化”椅子，設計師們把銅面板和融化銅結合在一起
To make the Molten Chair, the designers joined slabs of copper together with molten copper

另外，“碎石”椅則是通過手工把灰泥粘貼而形成的，因此這件作品看起來更加有機且不規則。

“融化”椅子更加細膩一些，設計師將銅面板和融化銅直接連接在一起，而混凝土則無法承受這種熱沖擊過程。

The Cobbed Chair, on the other hand, was made by shaping the mortar paste over a form by hand. As a result, it boasts a more organic, irregular form.
For the more refined, blocky Molten Chair, the designers joined slabs of copper together directly with molten copper – this thermal shock process would normally not be possible with Portland cement.


ThusThat工作室同樣應用廢棄銅制作鏡子底座
Studio ThusThat also used waste copper to create mirror holders

這個項目開始之前，設計師們就開始自我反問“銅到底是什么”？

設計師說：“我們知道金屬只是材料的一種，其中還會細分為尾礦、精礦，還有諸如金銀等稀有金屬，以及硫酸、硫酸鹽溶液、礦渣等等�！�

“它們都是銅，亦或是銅加工、回收、再利用的結果�！�

“這個項目讓我們不斷地去探索了曾經為我們所忽視的副產品的巨大潛力�！�

When starting the project, the RCA graduates asked themselves "what exactly is copper?".
"The metal we know is only part of a much wider material story," said the designers. "Mining overburden, tailings, metal concentrates, rare metals like gold and silver, sulfuric acid, sulphate solution, slag, and more."
"All of this is copper, or in other words is a direct result of processing, using, and recycling copper," they continued.
"This project exposes and proposes potential uses for these overlooked byproducts as we continue to search for new ore streams."


該項目的目的是表達這些銅副產品的巨大潛力
The project aims to showcase the "overlooked" potential of copper byproducts

ThusThat工作室位于倫敦和阿姆斯特丹，其代表作有VDF工作室的系列作品。

設計師解釋，他們希望這個項目能夠說明這種金屬的完整功能。

“ThusThat工作室就是希望能夠揭露材質的根本，挖掘源頭，探索曾經的廢棄物，重構人們對世界的理解�！�

“銅的應用無處不在，但是很大一部分肉眼并不可見。這是人們所應用的較為古老的金屬，甚至能夠追溯到8000年前，它有很好的延展性和抗菌性�！�

“就現代而言，再生能源的未來至關重要，一臺風力渦輪機就能夠應用5噸的銅，而高速公路每公里就需要10噸金屬�！�

ThusThat工作室曾經探究過金屬鋁的生產廢料，他們將有毒的赤泥渣回收應用為一系列的生土餐具。

Studio ThusThat, who are based in London and Amsterdam, were featured as the first designer in the VDF studio profiles series.
In the profile the designers explained how they hope their project will help to tell a more complete account of the primary metal.
"Studio ThusThat aims to overturn how we understand our material world by uncovering their hidden backstories, digging into their origins, and exploring that which was left behind as waste," they explained.
"Copper is ubiquitous to our modern world, yet it is largely invisible," the designers added. "It is the oldest metal mined by humankind, with ancient uses dating back 8,000 years. The metal was historically used for its malleability and antimicrobial properties (indeed, even against viruses)."
"Today, it is crucial for a renewable future: a wind turbine alone can contain up to five tonnes of copper, and 10 tonnes of the metal are needed per kilometre of high-speed railway."
Studio ThusThat previously worked with the waste taken from aluminium production, recycling toxic red mud residue into a series of earthy tableware objects for their From Wasteland to Living Room project.