Viewpoints Industry reports that according to the EPA,
construction is not one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly sectors
in operation today. In fact, the
construction industry results in 40% of the world's CO2 emissions, and 40% of
the content in US landfill sites. Cement
has been one of the industry's standard building materials for millennia. The ancient Romans refined the process of
making cement, one that had already been around for many years before their
time. A great deal of work -- resulting
in a huge carbon footprint -- is required in order to make cement. But a researcher at the University
of Edinburgh has found a better
material from which to construct buildings, especially where raw materials and
resources are scarce.
Viewpoints Industry examines a new building material that might replace concrete in some applications.
The Viewpoints Industry TV show is closely following the
results of experiments using sporosarcina pasteurii, a bacterium that has the
ability to bind material together.
Mixing this bacteria with loose aggregate, such as common sand, and
adding an activating agent, can produce a very stable material with which one
can build housing or whatever structures are needed. The activating agent is very common as
well: urea, derived from urine. And it's all biodegradable. This formula will allow development in
remote, resource-poor regions or quick, reliable rebuilding following a natural
disaster such as an earthquake or tsunami.
This will go a long way toward making a building truly environmentally
friendly.
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