[+] Next-Generation Concrete Making Solid Progress

Rome wasn’t built in a day but its construction legacy has lasted through the ages—now mega-corporations are stepping up to fund the development of new-age concrete. Ancient Rome’s Colosseum, and many other structures have survived two millennia and in January this year a paper published in Science Advances revealed the secret — “self-healing” concrete. MIT professor of civil and environmental engineering Admir Masic worked on the study with investigators from Harvard University, and laboratories in Italy and Switzerland. They found lime clasts and various forms of calcium carbonate but the real secret was super heating the concrete mix. “Since I first began working with ancient Roman concrete, I’ve been fascinated by these features,” Masic says. “These are not found in modern concrete formulations, so why are they present in these ancient materials?” To test the technology the team produced samples of hot-mixed concrete that incorporated ancient and modern formulations. They deliberately cracked it and then ran water through the cracks. Within two weeks the cracks had healed and the water could no longer flow. “It’s exciting to think about how these more durable concrete formulations could expand not only the service life of these materials but also how it could improve the durability of 3D-printed concrete formulations,” Masic says. ▲ An unexpected ancient manufacturing strategy held the key to designing concrete that lasts. Image: MIT Superfunding concrete mixes Mega tech-corporation Microsoft this month announced a $1-billion Climate Innovation Fund to research greener construction for its campuses and data centres, specifically in concrete. The creation of concrete and cement produces 8 per cent of global greenhouse emissions, and is also a big proportion of the company’s carbon footprint, which it wants to be negative by 2030. One of the technologies funded by Microsoft is an algae-based concrete model called Bio-Block by Prometheus Materials, and Skidmore, Owings &amp; Merrill. ▲ Twelve building on the Microsoft Corporate Campus in Redmond, Washington, will be replaced with 17 new ones, creating nearly 279,000sq m of office space. SOM design partner Scott Duncan spoke to The Urban Developer about the new material on show at the Chicago Architecture Biennial opening. “It’s not a surprise that we need to make a change in the way we build, and materials are such a big part of that,” Duncan says. “Concrete masonry blocks are so ubiquitous that it’s a very logical choice to attack those problems of carbon neutrality. “We see huge promise in it—we’re not only architects but structural engineers and sustainability engineers. “We’re able to consider all those things ... the structural performance, the aesthetics that are very similar to a concrete masonry unit but also all the carbon aspects and energy performance aspects that are serving as a thermal envelope.” SOM partnered with the International Masonry Institute to “connect the idea to reality” by having tradespeople on the table from day one for an installation at The Mews in Fulton Market, Chicago (main image and below). The change in materiality and carbon footprint could have a big impact on how future buildings are designed. “Carbon has begun to drive the way we think about designing the forms of our buildings,” Duncan says. “We are reducing the amount of surface area on our buildings, for example, on the skins to minimise the amount of material that goes into them. “Once you have a net-zero or zero-carbon solution for the skin, the envelope, you have more freedom to explore shapes and surface area.” ▲ SOM showcases an algae-based, net-zero concrete alternative in a spiraling form composed of bio-blocks. Image: Dave Burk Algae is not the only concrete composite in the mix—lobster shells, rubber tyres, personal protective equipment, construction waste and coffee-based mixes are under development in Australia. Depending on what is used, the concrete could be more flexible, have increased tensile strength or get rid of cement all together. RMIT research fellow Rajeev Roychand said items that would usually go to landfill could further reduce the carbon footprint and the cost of new concrete. “There’s a lot of waste ending up in landfills ... you have to invest money to dispose of it, you have to spare precious land and there are a lot of environmental and health issues,” Roychand tells The Urban Developer . “If we can create a circular economy you save valuable space, you’re not investing in disposing of it but transferring it into a valuable resource. “In terms of organic waste in Australia, it produces about 6.87 million tonnes of waste that ends up in landfill. “It amounts to 3 per cent of Australian greenhouse gas emissions.” The researchers looked at coffee as a replacement for sand but had to use a pyrolysis process—heating without oxygen—to enable the grounds to be a suitable substitute. The former structural design engineer also looked into fly ash, a residue of coal used in thermal energy production. “We even developed a zero-cement composite which was totally replacing conventional cement with fly ash, slag and some chemical additives,” Roychand says. “We saw a significant increase in the durability of the concrete for instance when you build any structure in a marine environment. ▲ The huge amount of PPE waste during Covid got researchers thinking... “And when we tested it in a sea environment it was 96 per cent better than conventional concrete, so there was no corrosion visible.” However, the future of thermal-powered coal plants is limited, so the research team continued into greener mixes. “There was a lot of PPE waste such as facemasks during Covid, so we had a chat to see if we could use it—and concrete is our core domain,” Roychand says. “We shredded the PPE waste into a fibrous material and added it in to concrete because it was strong in tension. “So any crack that formed was bridged by this fibrous material.” Roychand says there’s a lot of support from industry taking up such solutions. “In the near future we will see a real closed-loop curricular economy where we can create value out of whatever waste is going to landfill,” he says. “We are rolling this out in the next few months and are sorting out the logistics at the moment.” Carbon neutral right now Meanwhile, as research, funding and evolution in the industry is under way, Brickworks is producing a carbon-neutral brick made at its Longford, Tasmania plant. During the past 10 years, the ASX-listed company has gained national certification for its products. The firm uses sawdust as a biofuel in the brick kilns at the Longford plant with the sawdust supplied by the local timber industry, while raw materials for the bricks are extracted on site. Waste, and water and electricity use has been reduced as a result. In fact, it has added up to a 70,000 tonnes reduction of carbon emissions while remaining emissions were offset by purchasing carbon credits. As one of the greatest creators of carbon, the construction industry must move towards technology that reduced, not adds to the problem. With time, money and motivation, there are many such solutions not only on the horizon but close to reality. You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

[+] Next-Generation Concrete Making Solid Progress

Get the full story.

Architecture’s AI Shift: Faster Design, Same Humans

Global Capital Sets Sights on Australia’s Alternatives

Workers Laid Off Despite Looming Skilled Labour Shortages

From Survival to Scale: AHB Group Rises in Fractured Market

Developers Get into Groove as Vinyl Generation Rocks Seniors Living

Melbourne Long Lunch | Panel discussion with Tim Price, Jeremy McLeod, Katya Crema & Anne Michaels

A fireside chat with Troy Daffy | Managing Director, Silverstone Developments

Brisbane Long Lunch | Panel discussion with Rob Comiskey, Frank Licastro, Steve Laffey & Alexandra Stuart-Robertson

Sydney Long Lunch | Panel discussion with Jamie Durie, Jennifer Macquarie & Michael Romano

Dual Highrises, Revamp Planned for Perth Hotel

Architecture’s AI Shift: Faster Design, Same Humans

Graya Wins Approval for Byron Beachfront Scheme

Mildura Retail Centre Changes Hands for $130m

2026 Developer Outlook Lunch | Melbourne

2026 Developer Outlook Lunch | Brisbane

2026 Developer Outlook Lunch | Sydney