Nanoengineered concrete cuts CO2

Engineers at MIT are studying the nanostructure of concrete with a view to making a replacement product that would not generate the same high carbon dioxide emissions.

The production of cement, the primary component of concrete, accounts for five to 10 per cent of the world's total carbon dioxide emissions, making it an important contributor to global warming.

The team found that the source of concrete's strength and durability lies in the organisation of its nanoparticles, a discovery that could one day lead to a major reduction in carbon dioxide emissions during manufacturing.

‘If everything depends on the organisational structure of the nanoparticles that make up concrete, rather than on the material itself, we can conceivably replace it with a material that has concrete's other characteristics-strength, durability, mass availability and low cost, but does not release so much CO₂ into the atmosphere during manufacture,’ said Franz-Josef Ulm, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering.