Self healing concrete

He calls the material “bioconcrete” that can “self-heal.” In order to keep the bacteria dormant until it is needed, it is placed in small, biodegradable capsules containing the nutrient. When the concrete cracks, and water enters the gaps, it comes into contact with the bacteria and the food source, setting the healing process off. The bacteria then feed on the calcium lactate, joining the calcium with carbonate to form limestone, fixing the crack.

The process has been proven to work effectively, and can even be added to a liquid that could then be sprayed onto existing buildings. The problem, however, as always is the price. It is currently twice the cost of traditional concrete, but Jonker says that this is mainly due to the price of the calcium lactate, and if they can get the bacteria to use a sugar-based nutrient instead, the price would be dramatically reduced.  

Bendable concrete

A new type of fiber-reinforced bendable concrete will be used for the first time in Michigan this summer- and University of Michigan scientists hope that their new material will find widespread use across the country. 
The new concrete looks like regular concrete, but is 500 times more resistant to cracking and 40 percent lighter in weight. Tiny fibers that comprise about 2 percent of the mixture's volume partly account for its performance. Also, the materials in the concrete itself are designed for maximum flexibility. Because of its long life, the Engineered Cement Composites (ECC) are expected to cost less in the long run, as well.

Liquid granite

Scientists have developed a new building material that is fire resistant to temperatures in excess of 1100 degrees Celsius, is made largely from recycled material and is as versatile as concrete.

Liquid Granite offers a real breakthrough in reducing fire risk in buildings as, unlike concrete, it doesn't explode at high temperatures. It can also withstand high temperatures for longer periods, offering valuable minutes in the case of a fire.

The material is made up of between 30 and 70 per cent recycled material, mainly base products from industry. It uses less than one third of the cement used in precast concrete, which also reduces its carbon footprint.

Unfired clay bricks

Also known as earth masonry, unfired clay brickwork is constructed using earth materials (possibly with some additives). Earth masonry is not “fired” like conventional bricks, but the masonry units are air dried after manufacture to reduce shrinkage and improve strength. In some traditional forms of earth construction (e.g. cob or rammed earth), monolithic (solid) walls are constructed, but unfired clay bricks are similar to other masonry systems where there the units (“bricks”) are bonded together with mortar and possibly covered with a finishing system (paint or render).

Traditional forms of unfired clay bricks (cob blocks, adobe and mudbricks) are generally made by hand and as a result, have variable dimensions and other properties. Traditional earth masonry has thick walls (often over 300mm thick) as the mortar provides low bond strength and the thick walls have sufficient mass to keep themselves stable against lateral loads in dwellings.

Because of the environmental and financial cost of using materials in construction, it is preferable to reduce the wall thickness to approximately 100mm for internal partitions (the standard thickness for fired clay bricks and concrete blockwork). Thinner walls also reduce the structural loading and increase available space inside buildings.

Modern unfired clay brickwork uses units manufactured to accurate tolerances using a commercial extrusion or pressing system to provide a consistent, high quality product. This enables rapid, cost effective, 100mm thick walls with low environmental impact to be constructed. In most cases, modern unfired clay bricks are produced in commercial fired brick manufacturing plants using similar materials to fired bricks, but without putting the bricks through the firing process. This significantly reduces the energy used in manufacture and previous research has indicated unfired bricks have 14% of the embodied energy of fired bricks and 25% of the embodied energy of concrete blocks. In Germany, some fired brick plants have moved to making only modern earth masonry and associated products.

CPVC PIPES:

These pipes don’t allow the salt content of the water to get deposited on their walls. Thus they prevent the corrosion of the pipes and there byreduce the frequent replacement of the pipes. They are even resistant to fire andalso to acids to some extent. Though their initial cost higher than that of conventional pipes, their maintenance cost is very low

FLY ASH CEMENT:

This consists of a small proportion of fly ash instead of the usual components present in it. This will not only reduce the cost of cement but also it reduces the effect of pollution by removing the concentration of carbondi oxide in air.

INHIBITORS ADMIXED CEMENT

 New concrete buildings are built for long life. Inhibitors added concrete structureshave still longer life.The crack formation in concrete structure occurs due to the corrosion of rebar inside the concrete. This occurs because of the surface oxidization of iron rod into ironoxide due to diffused oxygen and moisture in the concrete.

The places, where the chloride content in the ground water is more, carbonationreaction occurs which leads to the decrease in alkalinity. Because of this, the rate of corrosion of steel rebar increases and eventually the cracks are formed. By adding theinhibitors admixture to the concrete mix, the corrosion of steel rebar can be prevented

SENSI TILE

o If you walk across your kitchen floor to get something from the refrigerator, the floor twinkles with lighted path that guides your way through the dark room.  The concrete of the tiles is embedded with acrylic fiber-optic channels that transfer light from one point to another.  As shadows move across Terrazzo's surface, the light channels flicker with a randomized.

Translucent Concrete

ØTranslucent concrete is a concrete based building material with light transmissive properties due to embedded light optical elements. It is usually made of Optical fiber. According to the concretes manufacturers, the optical fibers make up only 4 percent of the mixture. The light transmitting property makes them appear fresh, open and spacious

Ultra Touch Jeans Insulation

Jean is recycled through some process and it can be used for roofing like this It is light weight and this method reduces landfill waste

ELECTRIFIED WOOD

:  This European-designed material incorporates a source of electricity directly into tables and chairs.  If Two metal layers are pressed between the wood of the furniture, making it possible to pass an electrical current through the whole thing.  The 12-volt power is fed to the metal layers via one connector, and lamps, and other devices can be connected via the other.

 KINETIC GLASS (Living Glass)

 It is made of a cast silicone that has been slit and embedded.  The surface is embedded with wires that contract due to electrical stimulus . This contraction causes the slits or gills to open. The Living glass uses these microprocessors rather than motors to collect information about the environment The gills would open to allow airflow when needed thus maintaining a healthy air status quality

RICHLITE

 It is a dense material made from partially recycled paper and phenolic resin.  70 percent of the material is made with recycled paper.  It has a very high strength and has resistance to High temperature up to 350 F .

 Carbon Fiber

 Carbon fiber is made up of carbon strands that are thinner than human hair. The strands can be woven together, like cloth, and then that can be molded to any shape you might want. Carbon fiber is an extremely strong, lightweight material.  It's five times as strong as steel, two times as stiff, yet weighs about two-thirds less.