Bio-Concrete Construction

​

For centuries, concrete has been one of the most popular building materials around the globe. From the construction of roads and infrastructures to foundations and engineering projects, the familiar mixture of water, cement, and sand is utilized daily thanks to its easy-to-use properties and its common and affordable composite ingredients. However, concrete has unavoidable enemies – time and mother nature. Our teams and Partners are engineering and developing a new kind of concrete that will prove itself immune to decay. This is our bio-concrete, the structure of the future. 

By and large, concrete is an extremely sturdy building material. When constructed correctly and in the right conditions, concrete structures can easily last 50 to 100 or more years. However, in most cases time, wind, rain etc. can start to form cracks in concrete. These cracks allow debris and water to creep inside the concrete where moisture can slowly eat away at the rebar materials that reinforce almost every concrete structure in the world. As the steel succumbs to this process of wear and tear, the once-strong concrete structure continues to crack further and eventually crumble.

 

How Bio-Concrete fixes the problem: Through studies and tests with concrete leaders and microbiologists we see the new solution of a self-healing concrete product by exploiting the healing properties of mussel shells. Mixing a new type of bacteria and calcium elements we created a new type of concrete that can rebuild itself as moisture enters the cracks, gaps, and holes, a form of self-maintenance.When water begins to work its way into a concrete structure, the sea water activates the calcium in the crushed mussel shells. As this bacterial process occurs, the newly formed limestone expands to fill in the cracks created by the water and rebuilds the structure from the inside out, completely sealing the initial point where the cracks began. This eliminates the need for future expensive and complex repairs.

​

When used in the construction of floating foundations, bio-concrete has the potential to save millions on annual maintenance fees.