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Graphene Makes Concrete Twice As Strong While Reducing Carbon Emissions (inhabitat.com)
Paige.Bennett writes: In a recent study, University of Exeter's Center for Graphene Science used nanoengineering technology to add graphene to concrete production. The resulting graphene concrete is two times stronger than traditional concrete and four times as water resistant, but with a much smaller carbon footprint compared to the conventional process of making concrete. According to the research, the addition of graphene cuts back on the amount of materials needed in concrete production by nearly 50 percent and reduces carbon emissions by 446 kg per ton.
I remember hearing long ago how adding pumice to concrete made it better able to resist water damage. Supposedly that was the reason that aqueducts and other Roman structures exposed to water survived for centuries. I don't suppose pumice has the CO2 benefits but it's also something just needs to be mined and not made.
Though I doubt either one is available in the quantities needed to be really useful. Also wasn't there some report on us running out of the sand needed for concrete at our current rate of use?
They would be better off studying how to reproduce Roman Concrete. There are Mediterranean docks that are over a 1,000 years old that are in better condition than when they were new.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com...
Is graphene safe?
"We do not yet know whether graphene flakes can become airborne and inhaled in a form that is dangerous during use."
Are carbon nanotubes the next asbestos?
"The difference with asbestos was that the hazards were not known or ignored; large-scale use meant large-scale production, resulting in emissions that weren't properly controlled, which in turn caused exposure at unsafe levels and then widespread disease. This should never have happened and should never again happen."