New concrete captures carbon and is stronger and lighter

New developments in concrete production have made concrete that is stronger and lighter than conventional concrete and has carbon capturing properties.

According to the Whole Building Design Group, the goals of sustainable building design are:

“To reduce, or completely avoid, depletion of critical resources like energy, water, land, and raw materials; prevent environmental degradation caused by facilities and infrastructure throughout their life cycle; and create built environments that are livable, comfortable, safe, and productive.”

Concrete has been associated with the harmful release of CO2 gas and therefore not part of sustainable building design, but new ‘CarbonCure Technolgy’ has changed this. This process involves adding a measured amount of CO2 gas into concrete, which reacts with cement calcium ions to create nano-sized calcium carbonate – a mineral which becomes a permanent part of the concrete. This prevents CO2 gas from being released into the atmosphere.

As well as capturing carbon, the concrete is stronger, more durable and lighter than conventional concrete. Concrete produced by ConcreteCure Technology is more expensive but it is a better product. It can be used to construct walls and concrete flooring in sustainable buildings.

The load-bearing capacity of this concrete is six times higher than reinforced concrete. Major buildings use steel frames as well as concrete. Concrete floor systems built with substance can be constructed without steel reinforcements, and are 70% lighter than conventional concrete flooring. Large concrete sustainable commercial buildings in the future may not need steel frames.