Scientists Come Up With ‘Self-Sensing’ Concrete Replacement That Generates Power

Since the time of the Roman Empire hundreds of years ago, humans have used some iteration of concrete to construct their homes, places of worship, or meeting spaces. In fact, Italy’s Pantheon bears the largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built.

But how can the ubiquitous material be changed to better suit modern-day applications in the 21st century? That’s what a team of scientists at the University of Pittsburgh have attempted to come up with in its newly-created ‘metamaterial concrete’.

According to Interesting Engineering, a metamaterial is defined as a substance that has properties not found in naturally occurring materials. In this case, regular concrete has been improved to be less brittle and more flexible without sacrificing its strength.

“Massive use of concrete in our infrastructure projects implies the need for developing a new generation of concrete materials that are more economical and environmentally sustainable, yet offer advanced functionalities,” explained author Amir Alavi.

The new material, which is made from reinforced auxetic polymer lattices embedded in a conductive cement matrix, allows for the layers to be electrified when triggered, supported by the graphite powder acting as an electrode in the system.

From experiments, the researchers found that the material can compress up to 15% when under pressure, allowing it to produce 330 μW of power—which the team claims is the first composite material that has both compressibility and energy harvesting capabilities.

Amir posited that the lightweight system could open the door for concrete to be used in more applications in terms of construction, such as in the development of shock-absorbing engineered materials at airport runways or seismic base isolation systems.

The latter works as the electrical signals generated by the metamaterial concrete can be used to monitor damages incurred within the structure should there be an earthquake, so builders can make necessary changes to reduce their impact on construction.

Furthermore, the material could line roads to advance self-driving vehicles, in which chips can be embedded inside roads to help autonomous cars navigate when GPS signals are too weak or LiDAR technology isn’t available.

[via Interesting Engineering and AZO Build, cover image via Amir Alavi via Midjourney / EurekAlert]