Inga Kristín Guðlaugsdóttir and Elín Sigríður Harðardóttir are product designers who run the company Efnasmiðjan together. In recent months, they have been working on and leading a project entitled "Lupine in a new light - the fiber of the future" and based on research and experiments on Alaska lupine.
Icelanders know the lupine well, but it was imported into the country in 1945 and has since been widely used in soil revegetation throughout the country. At the beginning of the project, the properties and strengths of lupine as a raw material were investigated. The aim was to study the properties of fibrous material extracted from various parts of the lupine from different harvest times using different methods.
The purpose of the project is to develop environmentally friendly fiber materials, for example in packaging and building materials, from Alaska lupine in a sustainable way. The material is free of any external binders or additives and can also decompose rapidly in nature. Emphasis is placed on utilizing this material, which already exists to a large extent in Icelandic nature, without, however, eliminating it.
The project is still in the research stage and is currently being examined how different fiber materials can be made using different methods. Various experiments and measurements, such as texture measurements and more that require facilities, equipment and further scientific knowledge are in the hands of Matís, who is a partner in the project and is Sophie Jensen contact.
The results of research and experiments that have already been carried out indicate that lupine has special properties that make its fibers bind well together and form a strong fibrous material that is useful in many ways.
Lupine is in many ways an interesting research topic and the main emphasis has been on examining its physical properties. However, she also aroused Inga and Elín's interest in how controversial she is in Icelandic society. Lupine is in fact an endless source of lively debate and most people have strong opinions on its issues; people either love lupine or hate it.
Inga and Elín received the President of Iceland's Innovation Award in 2018 for the project, in addition to which it has received widespread coverage, such as in design publications and at conferences. You can follow the progress of the project and get more information on its website; Lupineproject.com.