This month's talk was about bio-construction materials. This was not about wood, as there would not be enough trees to cope with demand if all buildings were made of wood. This was about using bio materials to modify the way we use construction materials so that we can reduce carbon dioxide pollution during their manufacture and installation. This concentrates on the fact that cement production may cause up to 40% of the carbon dioxide contributing to the phenomenon of global warming. There are a number of routes towards reducing the level.

The cement industry has been working on carbon capture schemes to reduce the level of carbon dioxide emissions by using cleaner energy sources and also looking at material modifications leading to cement with carbon dioxide absorption qualities. The construction industry will look at, or through legislation be forced to look at, recycling of construction materials to create a circular construction economy.

Research organizations around the world are looking at how to adapt or modify materials to reduce the carbon dioxide created in their manufacture. In Australia, work has been undertaken to use coffee grounds, after going through a pyrolysis process to form a biochar which makes concrete 50% stronger. This saves on cement and stops coffee grounds from going to landfill. Other materials being used in small quantities include banana leaf ash, rice husk ash, peanut shells, and potato peel.

It is worth noting that limestone is extensively used in concrete manufacture. Over several millions of years ago, limestone rock was formed from shells and bones of dead animals so really we are reinventing the process for today's economy. Some future examples of biomaterials and bioinspired construction materials are: biotech concrete incorporating ureolytic bacteria, self-cleaning materials inspired by lotus leaves, tough materials such as spider silk and nacre shells, and adhesives such as mussel byssus and barnacle cement.

A new collaboration between Masic Lab at MIT, MIT.nano, and The Bahrain Institute for Pearls & Gemstones (DANAT) aims to explore the fascinating nano-world of natural pearls. This work is meant to leverage our multi-scale materials characterization and artificial intelligence approaches to uncover pearl fingerprints, investigate biomineralization processes, and possibly inspire advancements in sustainable cementitious materials.

There are many challenges and multiple potential solutions which give rise to hope for the future.