Revolutionizing concrete is a continued effort from innovators and they just reached a breakthrough. Researchers from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) developed a new carbon-negative building material that is groundbreaking in sustainable construction. Nima Rahbar is the Ralph H. White Family Distinguished Professor and head of the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering. Under his guidance, the team created a enzymatic structural material (ESM) by harnessing an enzyme that converts carbon dioxide into solid mineral particles. Then the particles are bonded together and cured under gentle conditions, faster than traditional concrete. This makes it able to shape the material into structural components within a matter of hours.
“Concrete is the most widely used construction material on the planet, and its production accounts for nearly 8% of global CO2 emissions,” said Rahbar. “What our team has developed is a practical, scalable alternative that doesn’t just reduce emissions—it actually captures carbon. Producing a single cubic meter of ESM sequesters more than 6 kilograms of CO2, compared to the 330 kilograms emitted by conventional concrete.”
