Future Cities Could Be Built Out of Algae-Produced Material
How scientists hope to use algae-grown limestone to build cities The burning of limestone from quarries contributes significantly to the 7% of the yearly greenhouse…
Construction News
Applying a Special Type of Bacteria to Concrete Increases Its Strength by 30%
The addition of denitrifying bacteria to recycled coarse aggregate concrete can significantly improve its freeze-thaw resistance Concrete is one of the most frequently used construction…
MIT Pioneers Technology To Grow Customizable Wood Products in the Lab With Little Waste
Scientists demonstrate that they can control the properties of lab-grown plant material, which could enable the production of wood products with little waste. Because of…
New Technology for Storing Summer Heat To Use in Winter
Funding to research thermal energy storage that could cut bills and boost renewables. New technology that could store heat for days or even months, helping…
Quantum Gravity Sensor Breakthrough Paves Way for Groundbreaking Map of World Under Earth’s Surface
An object hidden below ground has been located using quantum technology — a long-awaited milestone with profound implications for industry, human knowledge, and national security….
“Living Walls” Can Reduce Heat Lost From Buildings by Over 30%
Retrofitting an existing masonry cavity walled building with a green or living wall can reduce the amount of heat lost through its structure by more…
Steel or Timber? New Tools Help Builders Reduce Carbon Footprint of Truss Structures
New analysis could help identify optimal materials for the crisscrossing struts that bolster bridges, towers, and buildings. Buildings are a big contributor to global warming,…
2,050-Year-Old Roman Tomb Inspires Durable and Sustainable Building Materials for the Future
New research on ancient Roman concrete offers insights on ancient concrete resilience, inspires durable and sustainable modern constructions. Concrete often begins to crack and crumble…
UN: Long-Term Outlook Bleak for Building Sector CO2 Emissions Despite COVID Pandemic Dip
The economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic caused CO2 emissions from buildings and construction to fall significantly in 2020, but a lack of real transformation in…
A Concrete Solution: Recycled Concrete and CO2 From the Air Are Made Into a New Building Material
A new kind of concrete could reduce emissions from the construction industry. Calcium carbonate concrete is made from waste concrete and carbon dioxide from the…
Bacteria Could Help Build Sustainable, Eco-Friendly Construction Materials
Researchers at the University of Bath are investigating whether the natural properties of bacteria could help in developing a new type of environmentally friendly plasterboard….
3D Kirigami Building Blocks Designed To Make Dynamic Metamaterial Structures
A new approach to producing metamaterials draws on kirigami techniques to make three-dimensional, reconfigurable building blocks that can be used to create complex, dynamic structures….
Visualizing Cement Hydration on a Molecular Level – Could Enable 3-D Printing of Concrete
Imaging technique could enable new pathways for reducing concrete’s hefty carbon footprint, as well as for 3-D printing of concrete. The concrete world that surrounds…
Innovation Pioneers Score World First for Sustainable Construction With “Game-Changing” Graphene-Enhanced Concrete
First commercial pour of engineered graphene concrete takes place in UK using Manchester technology. A joint venture between graphene specialists at The University of Manchester…
World-First Concept for Rechargeable Cement-Based Batteries – Imagine a 20-Story Building That Stores Energy Like a Giant Battery
Imagine an entire twenty-story concrete building that can store energy like a giant battery. Thanks to unique research from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, such…
Snakeskin Inspires Safer Buildings
New research shows that it might be a good idea to look for inspiration in nature when designing load-bearing foundations for buildings. Despite human inventiveness…
Electrifying Cement With Nanocarbon Black: Cement That Conducts Electricity and Generates Heat
A collaboration between MIT and CNRS has yielded a cement that conducts electricity and generates heat. Since its invention several millennia ago, concrete has become…
Researchers Discover the Secret of Italian Renaissance Domes: Double Helix of Masonry
In a collaborative study in this month’s issue of Engineering Structures, researchers at Princeton University and the University of Bergamo revealed the engineering techniques behind…
