The modern world is built with concrete: Humans use more concrete annually than any other material besides water. Yet cement, the key component of concrete, is the source of as much as 10% of all carbon dioxide emissions worldwide.
Yet cement, the key component of concrete, is the source of as much as 10% of all carbon dioxide emissions worldwide.
To address this problem, researchers at the University of Washington and Microsoft developed a new type of low-carbon concrete by mixing dried, powdered seaweed with cement. The seaweed-fortified cement has a 21% lower global warming potential while retaining its strength. And thanks to an assist from machine learning models, the team arrived at this new formulation in a fraction of the time that such work would ordinarily take.
The team published its findings July 8 in Matter.
“Cement is everywhere — it’s the backbone of modern infrastructure — but it comes with a huge climate cost,” said senior author Eleftheria Roumeli, a UW assistant professor of materials science and engineering. “What makes this work exciting is that we show how an abundant, photosynthetic material like green seaweed can be incorporated into cement to cut emissions, without the need for costly processing or sacrificing performance.”
Read More: University of Washington
Image: From seaweed to structural material: A seaweed called Ulva (righthand petri dish) is dried (center), powdered (left) and then mixed directly in with traditional cement (beaker). The darker cement cube (top center) contains 5% seaweed by weight. (Credit: Mark Stone/University of Washington)
