💥Adding biochar to cement can result in carbon-negative concrete 💥

Researchers at Washington State University infused cement with #biochar and found that this resulted in a concrete that absorbs more carbon than is created in its production. If this proves to be more than just an isolated experiment, this could mean amazing things for biochar carbon removal (#BCR) investments for a #netzero future.

How does it work?

🔬 The researchers discovered that chemical reactions in the setting process of infusing #cement with biochar resulted in biochar absorbing as much as 23% of its weight in CO2 without affecting the load-bearing capacity of the resulting #concrete.

💧 A key factor is the use of wastewater high in #calcium, which forms calcite, that affects the way the biochar interacts with the cement. Utilizing this “washout” water allowed as much as 30% of the cement mixture to be biochar and still achieve a compressive strength of ~4,000 pounds/square inch (equiv. to conventional concrete).

What does carbon-negative concrete mean for CDR?

🏗 An estimated 8% of total CO2 emitted due to human activity is thought to be caused by cement and concrete production. This new finding could have serious contributions to building a zero-carbon environment in the future.

💡 This is another of already many studies that underscore biochar’s potential as a durable removal solution, further setting BCR to be perhaps the most relevant CDR technology for the next decade (learn more about biochar in my previous post: https://lnkd.in/exqr7NdT).

Although this is an isolated study, this paves the way for further revolutionary biochar research and development. This landmark discovery began in a university lab, but the researchers are hoping to scale up production for field demonstrations.

Shoutout to these great companies currently working on biochar in concrete: CarStorCon® Technologies (Thorsten Groeneveld) and ecoLocked (Dr. Mario Schmitt and Stefanie Gerhart).

What do you think about the potential of biochar in concrete? Who else is working on this topic who deserves a shout-out?

Source: https://lnkd.in/duH3S_pb