Within architecture, microalgae are employed to address sustainability issues and mitigate the impacts of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. This study proposes digital fabrication of ceramic ‘living’ building components as an investigative tool for design conditions. The health of the chlorophyte (green) microalga Chlorella vulgaris was monitored over two-week periods when immobilized in kappa carrageenan and clay binder-based hydrogels, and grown on a range of digitally fabricated ceramic components. The use of 3D printing is presented in relation to laboratory testing of controlled substrate variables including the impact of ceramic firing temperature, component wall thickness, three types of geometry for exploring cell growth, surface patterns to investigate cell migration, internal chamber subdivisions and clay type. The experiments reveal the benefits and limitations of creating micro-ecologies for algae growth through the introduction of geometry variation. In this study, the natural organismal sensing abilities are explored as a means for cell distribution.

在建筑中，微藻被用来解决可持续性问题并减轻人为二氧化碳（CO ₂) 排放。本研究提出陶瓷“活”建筑构件的数字化制造作为设计条件的调查工具。将叶绿素（绿色）微藻小球藻固定在基于 kappa 角叉菜胶和粘土粘合剂的水凝胶中，并在一系列数字制造的陶瓷组件上生长时，它们的健康状况被监测了两周。3D 打印的使用与受控基板变量的实验室测试相关，包括陶瓷烧制温度、组件壁厚、探索细胞生长的三种几何形状、研究细胞迁移的表面图案、内部腔室细分和粘土类型的影响. 实验揭示了通过引入几何变化为藻类生长创造微生态的好处和局限性。