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A Professor In The Field Of Engineering Developed A New Technique Capable Of Significantly Improving The Performance And Durability Of Concrete. The Method Can Increase Its Strength By Up To 100% Compared To Conventional Materials, Bringing Advances To Civil Construction And Urban Infrastructure.
Concrete Is One Of The Most Used Materials In The World. It Is Also One Of The Most Polluting. Only Cement Production Accounts For 8% Of Global CO₂ Emissions.
In Light Of This Scenario, A Professor Of Engineering From The United States Presented A New Alternative. The Proposal Is Promising And Could Change How Concrete Is Produced And Used In Constructions.
CO₂ Curing Technique Improves Concrete
Mehdi Khanzadeh, Assistant Professor At Temple University, Developed A Method That Combines Internal And External Curing With CO₂.
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This Process Increases The Depth Of Carbonation In The Concrete. And This Has A Direct Effect: It Improves The Strength And Durability Of The Material.
The Initial Tests Showed That The New Concrete Is 80% To 100% More Resistant Than The Materials Used Today.
This Represents An Important Leap, Especially For Applications In Structures That Need To Withstand Weight, Such As Beams And Columns.
How The New Method Works
The Process Created By Khanzadeh Uses Hydrogels With Enzymatic Solutions. These Elements Help Carbon Dioxide Penetrate The Concrete Better.
The Result Is A Deeper And More Uniform Carbonation.
This Is Important Because, Until Now, The So-Called Carbonatable Concrete Was Almost Exclusively Used In Non-Load-Bearing Blocks, Such As Masonry Blocks.
These Blocks Are Not Part Of The Load-Bearing Structure Of Buildings. They Are Used Only As Dividers Or External Walls.
The Reason For This Limitation Was Clear: Current Carbonatable Concrete Did Not Have Enough Strength To Be Used In Structural Elements. Now, With This New Method, That Could Change.
Less Pollution From The Start
In Addition To CO₂ Curing, The New Concrete Uses A Special Type Of Cement. This Cement Has A Smaller Carbon Footprint.
It Emits Less CO₂ During Manufacturing And Requires Less Energy In The Process.
In Other Words, The Innovation Begins Even Before The Concrete Is Used. From Production, There Is Already A Reduction In Emissions. And Then, During Curing, The Material Still Absorbs More CO₂ From The Atmosphere.
This Combination Of Factors Points To A More Sustainable Path. A Concrete That Not Only Pollutes Less But Also Helps To Capture Greenhouse Gases.
Ongoing Research And Financial Support
The Research Began In 2021. First, With Simple Mixtures. Then, Khanzadeh Moved On To More Complex Mortars.
In 2024, He Received An Important Recognition: The NSF CAREER Award. With This Support, He Will Be Able To Scale Up The Tests And Conduct Long-Term Evaluations.
The Goal Now Is To Ensure That The Technology Can Be Applied On A Large Scale. For That, It Needs To Be Accessible, Cost-Effective, And Adaptable To Different Markets Around The World.
A New Path For Civil Construction
If Validated And Widely Adopted, This New Concrete Could Transform Civil Construction. The Impact Goes Beyond The Technique. It Affects The Production Model And The Role Of The Sector In Environmental Issues.
The Opportunity To Use A Material That Captures CO₂, Has High Strength, And Low Emission Is A Real Advance. Something That Could Concretely — No Puns Intended — Contribute To Reducing The Effects Of Global Warming.
Khanzadeh’s Proposal Is Still In The Testing Phase, But The Initial Results Are Encouraging. A Stronger, More Durable, And Cleaner Concrete May Be Close To Becoming A Reality.
And If That Happens, Civil Construction Could Take An Important Step Towards A More Sustainable Future.
Se for verdade isto mudará muita coisa em nosso futuro…