Scientists develop game-changing material that could solve major problem in construction: 'The production process is relatively simple'

Obtaining sand that's suitable for concrete making is river-dredging — and mountain-crushing — work. 

But that's how the majority of sand needed to make the world's most-used building material is harvested, and the reserves are running low, according to experts from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and the University of Tokyo. 

In response, the researchers are developing a way to use abundant desert sand instead. Up to this point, it has been considered too fine and "not suitable" for concrete, NUST postdoctoral fellow Ren Wei said in a news release, shared by EurekAlert. 

"Can this 'useless' sand become a resource?" Ren Wei wrote.

If successful, the experimentation could yield a sustainable mix for building construction. But first, the experts are considering how to make it as clean as possible. 

It's an opportunity that Wei said has been "discussed for many years" as experts have noticed dwindling sand reserves. Paradoxically, there's an abundance of desert sand. To unlock its potential as a building material, the team pressed the desert variety with tiny pieces of wood under heat. The result is a botanical sand concrete. 

The team tested manufacturing it at different pressures and temperatures, developing a strong material that could be used for paving stones and other products after more analysis. 

"All the experiments so far have been carried out in the laboratory at the University of Tokyo," Ren Wei said. "We tested how various factors affect the strength and density of the materials, including temperature, mixing ratio, pressure, pressing time, and different types of sand." 

Concrete production is widely reported to account for about 8% of the world's carbon dioxide pollution, due to burning coal to generate heat needed for the process. Chemical reactions during manufacturing also release pollution, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. 

That's why alternatives, including sugarcane bricks and slurries made with recycled demolition waste, are being developed worldwide.  

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Wei's product still requires heat to produce, but the expert said that using the botanical mix near where the sand is harvested would eliminate transportation-related pollution. 

"The production process is relatively simple, so in principle the material can be made in many places," Wei said in the release. "But we need to test more, including how it can withstand cold, before it can be used out in Norway." 

The research is a lesson in the value of using what's already available, and it's a principle that can be applied at home. For example, cardboard toilet rolls can be turned into seed starters or cat toys, while pill bottles can be used to store a variety of small items. 

As another example of inventive reuse that addresses construction-related pollution, California's Azure Printed Homes is using recycled plastic to make 3D-printed dwellings.

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