Bendable concrete and other CO2-infused cement mixes could dramatically cut global emissions
In The Conversation, experts break down what’s needed to make CO2 in concrete work on a wide scale to curb global emissions.
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Written by Lucca Henrion, Victor Li, Volker Sick, and Duo Zhang
One of the big contributors to climate change is right beneath your feet, and transforming it could be a powerful solution for keeping greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.
The production of cement, the binding element in concrete, accounted for 7% of total global carbon dioxide emissions in 2018. Concrete is one of the most-used resources on Earth, with an estimated 26 billion tons produced annually worldwide. That production isn’t expected to slow down for at least two more decades.
Given the scale of the industry and its greenhouse gas emissions, technologies that can reinvent concrete could have profound impacts on climate change.
As engineers working on issues involving infrastructure and construction, we have been designing the next generation of concrete technology that can reduce infrastructure’s carbon footprint and increase durability. That includes CO2-infused concrete that locks up the greenhouse gas and can be stronger and even bendable.
This article was originally published in The Conversation. Read the full article.