How we could make carbon-negative concrete | Tom Schuler

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Concrete is all around us: we use it to build our roads, buildings, bridges and much more. Yet over the last 2,000 years, the art of mixing cement and using it to bind concrete hasn't changed very much -- and it remains one of the world's biggest emitters of carbon. Entrepreneur Tom Schuler previews an innovative way to create concrete, potentially turning it into a carbon sink that traps CO2 from the atmosphere -- while producing a viable building material.
This talk was part of the Countdown Global Launch on 10.10.2020. (Watch the full event here: • [Replay] Watch the Cou... .) Countdown is TED's global initiative to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis. The goal: to build a better future by cutting greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, in the race to a zero-carbon world. Get involved at countdown.ted....
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[@Sheamu5]

Lighter in color is also a huge benefit, reflects more energy from the sun.

[@curtblack686]

the construction industry needs to embrace this ASAP!

[@syncmonism]

That will, for the most part, require government regulations or incentives, but yes, I agree.

[@danmacken9253]

There are many silver bullets being created to combat climate change, I have followed this one for a while now and it is certainly one of the strongest we have ready to use today. I hope changes to legislation facilitate uptake.

[@renaissancestatesman]

If it works why does it need legislation?

[@PsicoPato-]

@@renaissancestatesman that's how countries works... Unfortunally

[@Weaseltube]

@@renaissancestatesman because it costs more and it requires modifying longstamding processes which industry is always reticent to do. Moreover, current legislation can hinder its adoption by being too narrowly specific about existing standards for concrete, to the extent that it disallows the use of low carbon concrete.

[@renaissancestatesman]

@@Weaseltube not surprised there are regulatory issues. My issue would be legislation mandating anything. Guess I wasn't clear on that. All for reducing legislation. Construction as an industry is ridiculously slow to change. It doesn't seem there is overly much needed in terms of actual manufacturing changes. Hope they pull it together sooner than later.

[@renaissancestatesman]

@@PsicoPato- a vast number of industries and products do not require government intervention to succeed. In fact those industries with the least intervention do best in terms of innovation.

[@saraterkawi2608]

this is the best news of 2021!

[@engineeringmemers8663]

*yet.

[@lanfour4444]

@@engineeringmemers8663 LEt's hope for even better news along the way.

[@jessicawhite2968]

I would love to see a stress test for this concrete to see how it holds up against traditional structural concrete. As a future engineer currently engineering having information about materials that are both better for the environment but still fulfil their requirements for usage is absolutely amazing for future projects around the world.

[@evolvedcopper2205]

Use of waste CO2, this is epic! I did an short exercise on this in communication studies. This was never anything I could have thought of. Some people in the twilight years of middle of their lives don't care about stuff pertaining to making the planet last longer, this is amazing to see a team coming up with something to help

[@renaissancestatesman]

Everything he says indicates this should start dominating the market. Even at a 30% cost premium it should be more economical. Wonder what the cost premium actually is though.

[@Weaseltube]

I don’t think the cost premium is that high but there are industry practices and regulatory obstacles also that make it harder to change to. I’ve read that they suggest we all contact our legislators to move regulators to change building code so concrete standards are performance-based rather than ingredient-based.

[@Achalacha]

It's mind-blowing ! I hope your solution will be highly successful around the world !

[@djayjp]

Give these people a Nobel Prize!

[@1.5Koreans0.5American]

Happy 2021

[@LordOfTheBing]

2:47 "it doesn't exist any longer" every one who ever had a chemistry class 101: 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♂️

[@ceciliazuber3443]

well it "doesn't". CO2 is not an element. it is broken apart as he mentioned 2:30 and used as C and O2. i guess it exists as carbon in the bricks. would be interesting to see the exact chemical reaction.

[@bilikdotid]

Thank you so much for this information. Hope this solusion make impact

[@AveryMilieu]

Since my passion and design of choice (but not in my budget) is a Monolithic Dome (look it up) which uses concrete applied by spray (as in "shot-crete") I have a deep interest in this subject. My alternative fantasy home is concrete built using cast bricks and a lot of rebar. Wonderful soundproofing and insulative qualities and I cannot speak highly enough of concrete houses. Except for wireless reception. Phone and wireless reception sucks... But the carbon footprint has always been an issue. Still is, since the CO2 impact on the climate may have been exaggerated by the fear mongering scientists (look at solar influence) and it seems that if we sink TOO much carbon the trees will starve... So. Thank you for this inspiration. The only real question is how much more this product will cost over the traditional variety. You didn't mention that.

[@justeme3498]

Merci pour la traduction . c'est un sujet important.

[@ananya.a04]

My God that was brilliant! Simply mind-blown! I hope this change reverberates faster so that we can move towards a carbon negative world faster. I hope we can bring this to India.

[@juliehovar5488]

Dear Team, not sure how We found this way to Your Channel. Dear Team. Today is my father's birthday. He was a profound "road-maker". He would agree and share great knowledge and Thank You for You and Your teams' brave and true sharings. Very Well presented, indeed.....

[@wouterben123]

Amazing, but what does it cost!?

[@EcoEnvious]

A curing time of 24 hours can definitely make it worthwhile to the industry, even if it costs quite a bit more. Then, as more people use it, the demand drives up supply, and it should become cheaper very quickly. Concrete curing time can be a big problem for the construction industry, speaking as a designer who works with contractors.

[@MrChangCJ]

@@EcoEnvious sounds expensive to bring CO2 to the construction site to cure the concrete though. 3:58

[@alankwanHI]

Sounds good on paper. Is it true? Caveats?

[@wouterben123]

Probably way more expensive

[@renaissancestatesman]

Production cost is all I want to know. Only missing variable. Would be great to see the cost breakdown showing money saved on water vs increased costs elsewhere.

[@seferdi4439]

To my knowledge the only Problem is the extremely slow acceptance rate of the building industry (even changing to something cheaper can cost short-term, like adapting to much better drying times changes the process) As he said there are many different types of solutions implemented. But for as long nobody has implemented them on a large scale the building companies (responsible for failures) share the insecure feeling your comment implies. And this is pure speculation: the cement buisness is a giant wealthy industry, those aren't easily outcompeted by newcomers due to their ridiculous advantage in form of captial and don't like to take risks or the above mentioned changes to the process as well.

[@remyllebeau77]

@@seferdi4439 If it was cost effective you wouldn't have any problem with acceptance.

[@christophergruenwald5054]

I wonder how guys would finish slabs if it’s curing out so fast?

[@dvl973]

This is amazing I wish everyone in the industry dropped what they're doing and started doing this

[@clearmenser]

Now this is real TED. Thank you !!!! Nice to hear someone not talking about their feelings or their identity.

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

Why do you have such a big problem with people talking about things you just happen to not be into? Seems there is some _reason_ you are so hugely invested in negating their efforts, because people who simply don't like things, just do something else. I'm not into golf, but you'll never see me giving anyone a hard time for talking about it. lols

[@remyllebeau77]

I would agree, but the green nonsense and fear mongering about the climate change is also very evil because it is anti-human and straight from criminal elite globalists.

[@frunkenstein1057]

This needs to be implemented immediately in every country that can afford it

[@devinray9132]

This is why innovation is the answer and not regulation. Don't get me wrong some regulation definitely is needed. Technology and innovation will save the planet. Kuddos to this guy and his team doing this.

[@jplourde11]

If this works, this is amazing and absolutely so timely. Currently the construction industry accounts for roughly a 3rd of all greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing that to 0 is necessary in order to achieve draw down.

[@mikeogle9179]

This process plus Graphene is a game changer. New construction materials that are lighter, stronger and greener than existing cement based products. In time they will be cost effective as well.

[@heartobefelt]

even better is the effect on Insulation from graphene etc , Homes insulated to a higher standard will require 70 % - 100 % less energy for heating and cooling.

[@TrueCrimeQueen]

2021 WILL MUCH BETTER THAN 2020! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

[@phantomcest3640]

I wish to be a part of this as I'm in last year of architecture

[@beyondEV]

can't get CO2 from the atmosphere just like that (concentrating CO2 needs energy). but like Bio Fuel Systems you can use it to neutralize other pollution from industrial plants (or power plants).

[@Jaded-Wanderer]

Sounds awesome. If big concrete users can save money you have a market, but you didn't mention the money.

[@RalphInRalphWorld]

At this point, I don't think there are any solutions to climate change that won't cost some extra money. If climate change were profitable to prevent, the market might have found a solution by now.

[@Block1618]

@@RalphInRalphWorld a lot of it is overcoming the initial hurdle of cost, with significant long term cost reductions.

[@rudig5698]

Thank you folks from TED talks, you’ve inspired me to start my own KZbin channel!😊

[@elkhankhamzin9346]

unforgettable scent of raw concrete

[@StopVideoTime]

This is the most hopeful thing i'v heard in a long time

[@Aryan-hd2fl]

Thanks but will we be able to construct more tougher infrastructures or it'll be the same as we are having today??

[@sking369]

Now this is fucking green energy!

[@rajivpokharel88]

What an amazing news to start 2021......hope to see it develop and adopted asap.....

[@hixivstgaming]

Well done, this is such great news! I hope concrete companies hear about this and convert asap!

[@ashishbalodia5617]

Just start doing it today ,every cement producing industry...

[@rhythmrecall]

Did he comment on the strength and I missed it? Certainly very exciting to hear about this and would love to see demonstration projects!

[@ding1466]

Thats super cool! But what's the actual durability? How long does it last? How can you scale up production? There is a lot that needs to be done and figured out before we can put it in buildings and bridges. I like that they said it will take a long time for the industry to adapt instead of the idealist ignoring the reality. I hope this works!

[@ojussinghal2501]

underrated

[@ice2787]

Very important. I think wood for building houses is great too.

[@thecrazy8888]

If the C02 doesn't leach out over time this would be amazing.

[@VyvienneEaux]

Saying the CO2 doesn’t exist anymore once it’s incorporated into CaCO3 (limestone) is disingenuous. The CaCO3 will readily react with acids in the environment to produce CO2.

[@PS-nf3xw]

Is it 3d printable?

[@fionafiona1146]

Not outside a kilm

[@NetZeroTech]

Terrific! What's needed to transform the industry? How can we help to make this the standard?

[@KK-wn7ts]

If any rust happening during the formation of ferrock?. If any what is its significance?

[@alicelyol1749]

This sounds like a dream come true

[@MrChip9821]

Yes! I hope this is adopted ASAP!

[@maritamburo]

Thanks for posting.

[@punnaroothsrimongkolsilp6279]

Thank you so much for teaching me. :)

[@principal_optimism]

The sand used in concrete is also leading to a global shortage of sand.

[@baltazarleyba9610]

Sand is not running out. The type of sand that is needed comes from rivers and there is a lot of it but since they use up the sand that is near the plants, it is not sustainable to haul from further away. Same thing is happening with oil. There is a lot left but the easily extractable one is running out and it costs much more than it’s worth to exploit it. Fracking is one of the new sustainable “solutions”.

[@krisoliver1335]

How do we get more information on this product

[@mako1181]

Awesome! I would love to read more literature on this! Also I can't help but wonder, if this technology where to go mainstream, whether or not it could be a incentive for other carbon capture techs to be developed, in order to feed the CO2 that this concrete needs?

[@Mtaalas]

If true, this is something that every country has to turn to using legislation to force all concrete be this type by 2030 or so.

[@gamengaweeg9207]

awesome. I hope to see it being used in the construction sites

[@MrChangCJ]

sounds expensive to bring CO2 to the construction site to cure the concrete 3:58 anyway i rmb hearing that this industry is super hard to change coz nobody wants to take the risk of using new material that needs to pass lots of safety standards and long term testing and prob coz cement is already damn cheap and ultimately economics is what drives change

[@majorfallacy5926]

So what's the big innovation behind using limestone, aka the oldest cement known to men? Messing up the chemistry with more Co2 than necessary for curing isn't going to make it any stronger, not to speak of the fact that limestone dissolves pretty easily. As much as I hope that they actually invented something useful, it does make my bullshit sense tingle Edit: can't find any scientific papers in his or his companies name. If he had anything to show, he would've made sure the world got to see it. Seems like a lot of hot air

[@KyrYiannisKYRiakides]

2:00 - We "came up with a new cement chemistry"... Tell us! Is it a Patented method or methods (for producing cement and for curing concrete)? 2:20 - You "get CO₂ by capturing waste gas from other industrial facilities, like ammonia or ethanol plants". The CO₂ produced by the cement industry, when burning limestone with the other raw material (in lower temperatures, as you say), can't be used? Or even the atmospheric CO₂ can't be of any use?

[@99Racker]

If you are using waste CO2 to make acids, etc. what waste compounds result in the process?

[@kevinwells4986]

Just asking, forgive my ignorance, was it your objective to reduce the carbon footprint? Is that how you came 'to be' ? Thank you for your work and response. Good fortune in 2021.

[@actsims]

we're trying to convert the concrete industry the second most used material on the planet into a carbon sink for the planet, without using the most used material...

[@1arualblack1]

Now to popularize it and start passing laws for it

[@andridariciherang1052]

I hope this research will continue to develope further as to reduce CO2 balanced with cost and concrete strength.

[@Not_Nyx864]

Sounds great but what are the downsides?

[@ttmallard]

Hemp mortar soaks CO2 for its life, Roman walls 2000yrs exist. Hempcrete has some cement to work for foundations, it's a natural insulator, ~R4.6/inch vs concrete, transpires moisture & fungi can't grow on it. For N.America, Canada has machines & supplies by the container. Cheers 🍺

[@samuelzev4076]

Is there a way that we could purchase these zero carbon concrete right now before they reach the market?

[@annmarie7843]

So simple yet effective, I LOVE IT OHMYGOD

[@Leon-pm6lr]

What is the price of this stuff? Is it long term stable?

[@AkashVora]

Great step, next is to tackle sand mining issues by the cement industry which are eroding our rivers

[@jasondiaz4260]

Does this only apply to pre-fabricated concrete?

[@kayrealist9793]

I would like to invest in this company!

[@BiggMo]

I wonder if/how this process effects its appearance?

[@YouAndImpact]

Nice video 👌

[@anyuisbjoern]

Can someone explain it in more simple terms?

[@edwarderoukov5236]

What is the name of the company the presenter refers as "we"? where I can read about technology, any real life examples, even as an experiment? Usually there are links below the video with information regarding the subject, but not here. I wonder why.

[@epictrooper2568]

This is really great

[@_Everyone__]

Brilliant !

[@adrianofacioli]

Awesome!

[@fasterthanjesus9695]

Cool rams bro! This is hella useful. Thanks.

[@firstaidnetwork2535]

Thanks Tom

[@CounterclutchHD]

Amazing technology. Is anyone concerned for the potential repercussions of taking too much CO2 out of the atmosphere? Or am I just being crazy

[@jonhylow1239]

sounds good but Im afraid those changes and other ones will take way too long, to save us.

[@sofiiseize]

And how you obtain CO2 negative ?

[@arlinegeorge6967]

Beautiful impressive informative talk. Pray more n more amazing souls rise n spread. Thank you, bless you. All your dreams come true.

[@heinhtet2234]

1:51 look like those from animation movies 😆

[@amalambu3316]

Awesome 👌

[@Dolcesangue]

What about the raw material? Did I miss something ? The concrete industry also consumes a lot a sand. All the supply chain unfortunately has to be taken into account.. it is great anyway !!

[@benschebella673]

Incredible if true and commercially viable!!

[@petershaw223]

How expensive is this concrete?

[@jayd.o.t]

I like ted

[@robertzawasky545]

yea, he’s great.

[@ZokomoTV]

This sounds like a promising technology!

[@Kelli.Hicks.5]

That is so cool.

[@cassyskins]

It must be spread to other countries.

[@jacysteven921]

Nice man

[@buffytummy]

why are we not investing this?

[@luedriver]

this could mean more cement housing and brutalist buildings could make a comeback

[@aartigundure2796]

Surely inovative✌

[@vthilton]

Save Our Planet

[@nadalaili7252]

This is so cool!!

[@andreholmes6880]

Absolutely AMAZING!!!!!

[@Melesniannon]

This sounds so amazing, part of me is dreading the "but...." that follows. The only "but" is a tenacious industry? Stubborn politicians? This doesn't even require an economic investment if at all, same equipment, same materials. This seems to have no downsides at all, adopt NAO plz!