Concrete lighter than Water
Yesterday, I received word that my research grant for "Minimizing Portland Cement in an Ultralightweight Concrete Composite" was approved!
What does this mean essentially? I get to spend time putting bubbles in concrete and researching a number of 'unique' reinforcement techniques to mitigate the strength loss associated with lighter densities. The motivation is making concrete to be a more accessible residential building material, on the order of 1/5th price of a typical volume build. Structural safety is paramount of course.
The good news, I get to publish the research to a Google Site for public access, so I think maybe I should post it on steem too!
Picture: Member of my group smashes a concrete sample for another line of research to remain nameless currently (Credit: Me)
Congratz. It is too bad in the U.S.A we don't allow "hempcrete" in the building of our dwellings here. R40 insulation value is pretty amazing, but then what would Dupont do with all that fiberglass?!? Have fun pumping bubbles in cement. It does sound fun.
That's interesting! I've heard hempcrete tossed around as a concept but never had time to investigate. Will do.
I'm not clear on the R-value potential for this density of aerated concrete but it's going to be vastly improved compared to normal mixes due to the insulating effect of the entrained air! Thanks for something to think about.
Hey, Andy!
This sounds like a fascinating and potentially revolutionary project! Please tell us more as you go along.
Congrats :)
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Interesting
I will follow you to see your future posts!
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