Publisher's Commentary: Industry Insights — Sustainability in Concrete Construction
By Olivia Whipple, E&M Consulting, Inc.
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Concrete is the second most used material in the world, only after water.1 While concrete is generally considered to be a sustainable product due to its long life cycle, inability to rust, rot and burn and its resistance to natural and man-made disasters, it is said to be responsible for 4-8% of the world’s CO? and almost 10% of the industrial water withdrawals, straining supplies for drinking and irrigation.2*3 The goal is to reduce these numbers, and there are several ways to do it. Many plants have started using industrial byproducts as an alternative fuel source to fossil fuels to run their operations, and doing so keeps them from ending up in landfills.2 They are also adding additional cementitious materials such as fly ash, slag cement and silica fume to their mixtures while using water reducers, retarders and superplasticizers to strengthen concrete, thereby using less water and saving mechanical energy.?*? Another option is pervious concrete, which saves on material by eliminating the need for drainage structures, underground piping and retention basins and benefits the environment by draining directly into the subsurface and discharging into rivers and lakes.? Some companies have also been using CO? to cure concrete instead of water, reducing carbon emissions and recycling 60-80% of water used in the process.? While there is still a long way to go, with new and constantly changing technologies these numbers will continue to improve.
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