{"id":7716,"date":"2021-09-07T13:42:42","date_gmt":"2021-09-07T17:42:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/?p=7716"},"modified":"2021-09-07T13:42:44","modified_gmt":"2021-09-07T17:42:44","slug":"building-stronger-and-greener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/2021\/09\/07\/building-stronger-and-greener\/","title":{"rendered":"Building Stronger… and Greener"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Concrete is essential to the development of buildings around the world, but its impact on the environment can be considerable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cement, for example, is a crucial component in concrete but it is energy intensive to produce and its manufacture has a big footprint when it comes to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to a 2018 report from Chatham House, over 4 billion metric tons of cement are produced annually. This, the policy institute said, accounts \u201cfor around 8% of global CO2 emissions.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As concerns about the sustainability of the construction sector mount, a number of firms \u2013 including some major players \u2013 are making attempts to develop sustainable construction products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LafargeHolcim<\/a>, the Swiss-headquartered building materials giant, announced on Thursday that its \u201cgreen concrete\u201d had been made available on the U.S. market. The firm is also planning to introduce the product to Latin America, Canada and the U.K. It is already available in Switzerland, Germany and France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Called ECOPact, the concrete comes in a number of iterations. Depending on which one is used, the company claims the product can have \u201c30% to 100% less carbon emissions compared to standard (CEM I) concrete.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhere regulatory conditions allow, ECOPact products integrate upcycled construction and demolition materials, further closing the resource loop,\u201d the firm says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LafargeHolcim is not alone in its aims to develop more sustainable materials. The HeidelbergCement Group<\/a>, another major building materials company, is targeting CO2-neutral concrete by the middle of the century \u201cat the latest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In its Sustainability Report for 2019, the German business said it would reach its goal in a number of ways, including the development of \u201cinnovative cement types with a lower CO2-footprint.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using waste products to develop building materials is an interesting idea which has led to the creation of a number of innovative and novel products in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Netherlands-based StoneCycling, for example, says its \u201cWasteBasedBricks\u201d are produced from a minimum of 60% waste. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting rid of cement altogether is another intriguing concept. In the U.K., the DB Group has developed Cemfree, which it describes as a \u201ctotally cement-free alternative to conventional concrete.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To date, the material has been used in a number of settings, including part of the M25, a major motorway in the south of England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analysis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is the first one that is showing a glimpse into the future of society, and a more specific topic for my thesis. Being able to incorporate sustainable design into this space is really important when considering the future ramifications of whatever is built; I do not want my design to have a negative impact on the space, especially long term. I chose to first research concrete, as it is the typical choice for building foundations since it is strong and durable. I think incorporating recycled materials into this existing infrastructure is a great start, but could be pushed even further. It is insightful and reassuring to know that many companies are pushing this same effort toward a more eco-friendly construction, lowering CO2 emissions and reusing products that otherwise are trash. I am interested in pushing beyond this article to uncover more specifics on exactly how \u201cgreen concrete\u201d is made and how it can be utilized best.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Concrete is essential to the development of buildings around the world, but its impact on the environment can be considerable. Cement, for example, is a crucial component in concrete but it is energy intensive to produce and its manufacture has a big footprint when it comes to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. According to a 2018 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":7723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-7716","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science-tech"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/52"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7716"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7725,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716\/revisions\/7725"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/desis.osu.edu\/seniorthesis\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}