Concrete is the building material of choice. It’s the second most used substance after water. Its use is responsible for 8% of global emissions, but a discovery by the University of Manchester’s Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre can reduce that.
Concrete becomes significantly stronger when graphene is added. The new mixture is called Concretene and has been used across England by Nationwide Engineering.
At Mayfield Depot in Manchester it has been used to create the world’s first Concretene mezzanine, where emissions were reduced by 30% compared to the use of concrete.
Material innovations like this are essential to reach net zero.