Incredible innovations in concrete that will make construction easier
Image courtesy of Dean Hochman at Flickr.com
Concrete has been the go to material to build for ages. Being one of the most used, it was only a matter of time until different institutions began to research ways to make it easier to use, lighter, faster to dry, among other things. We now have an array of innovations that will revolutionize the way we see concrete forever.
Supercap System
Pumping up to 30,000 pounds per hour in a completely flat slab that will be dry by the next morning, this is the next big thing in concrete for slabs. An example of this was the Swedish Hospital and Medical Office Building, which has a 600,000-sf campus. They managed to save $35,000 and finished before schedule due to many different methods used during the construction, including the Supercap system to cap the concrete base slab. Normally, a trowel-applied finish would have taken a lot more time and would actually have come out more expensive. This self-leveling cement base is revolutionizing construction and peace of mind about quality and in this case flatness of slab during projects.
What is LATICRETE SUPERCAP? Click here to see the video
Image courtesy of LATICRETE International, Inc. at YouTube.com
Drying time reduction
There have been two advances on this front. One is the Aridus Rapid Drying Concrete that is a ready-mix. It has a unique combination of fast drying time, high early strength, compressive strength and low permeability. It sped up one particular project from its four-month drying period to 21 days, at which point all the crew was able to install final flooring. With Airdus Rapid Drying Concrete you can prevent that floors go bad, which costs millions of dollars to the construction industry. With flooring nightmares, you could be looking at delays, environmental hazards, cost overruns, liability issues, moisture mitigation and damaged reputation. With their promise to avoid all of this, they are definitely helping construction companies be more efficient and effective.
The other is a Rapid-curing polyaspartic coating which offers faster productivity, along with high performance and durability. This coating can be used for both metal and concrete surfaces and it will resist damages by even the toughest substances like chemical spills, abrasions or ultraviolet light, which usually starts wearing down the material within a construction. Many buildings that have concrete flooring like hotels, restaurants, retail space and healthcare are starting to look for alternatives and this could definitely be one of them.
Solving problems
Concrete is also coming to rescue on some occasions, with alternatives to solving real issues. For example, the BoralPure Smog-Eating Tile is literally removing nitrogen oxides from the atmosphere. The company not only makes roofs, but stone, bricks, siding and trims. All made in concrete, they also offer amazing finished to not have to sacrifice elegance and beauty for all the advantages that this particular treated concrete will give you. The BoralPure Smog-Eating Tile definitely made the list with its environmentally friendly attributes as well as its other features like using UV light to break down organic substances, which in the long run can turn into mold or algae. They can even be recycled when their lifespan is over.
Going Green
Like the previous example, here concrete is looking at ways to go green and without sacrificing its strength and endurance, making it more environmentally friendly. A clear example was with one of the World Trade Center’s new constructions. Faced with some strict restrictions in terms of the material used and informed they had to use recycled materials, they went out in search of a solution and found one in BASF Construction Chemical’s Green Sense. Besides the environmental benefits like reduction in fossil fuels and greenhouse gas production, rain acidification potential, water and solid waste, they are also saving at least 25.4 million in kWh.
BASF Construction Chemicals has advanced in many technologies and applications for cement and concrete like cement additives, concrete protection, flooring, concrete admixtures and fibers, and concrete repair. As long as companies like this continue exploring new uses and ways to improve the use of concrete, we can continue to expect amazing things from this industry.
Making it look good
Now, we all know concrete is not necessarily the most attractive looking material to include in a construction, but there have also been innovations on this front. PROSOCO, with its Consolideck line, have designed a way to improve the density and surface appearance of concrete. It has two lines, the Consolideck LS line features a lower viscosity and more highly reactive silicates, allowing it to penetrate deeper than most concretes and to harden without aggressive scrubbing and rinsing. The Consolideck LSGuard is a high-gloss sealer, hardener and densifier, which not only makes the floors more resistant, but gives a high-gloss finish. This kind of finish will allow light to reflect off of it much more, there won’t be a need for floor waxes or liquid polishers or any other convention resin coating for that matter. This will definitely bring the much needed brilliance cement was lacking.
Image courtesy of Passive House Institute & Alliance U.S at Flickr.com