Smart cement mixture turns buildings into batteries

Researchers at Lancaster University have developed a cement mixture, consisting of the waste material flyash and an alkaline solution, which is capable of conducting electricity.

Unlike existing smart concretes, which are typically based on graphene and carbon nanotubes, the new mixture does not contain any expensive materials, and is even cheaper to produce than conventional Portland cement.

In the mixture, known as a potassium-geopolymeric (KGP) composite, electricity is conducted via potassium ions that hop through the crystalline structure, according to project leader Professor Mohamed Saafi, from Lancaster University’s Engineering Department.

“To make cement you have to mix the flyash with an alkaline solution, in this case we use potassium hydroxide and potassium silicate,” he said. “When you mix them together they form a cement material, containing potassium ions that act as the electrolyte.”

The mixture could ultimately store and discharge between 200 to 500W/m².

A house constructed with exterior or partition walls made with KGP, for example, could store electricity from solar panels during the day, and discharge it at night. Panels built from KGP could also be retrofitted onto homes and other buildings.