By: Cooper lee
smog-eating concrete
What is Smog-Eating Concrete?
Smog-eating concrete (or photocatalytic concrete) was developed back in 2007 by the Italian cement company Italcementi. It was meant to act as a self-cleaning cement that would be an ingredient in concrete, but was later proved to be capable of getting rid of pollution in the surrounding air. Reducing the levels of certain pollutants by 20 – 70%, depending on local conditions and the amount of exposed surface area. But how does this product work?
Photocatalytic concrete uses titanium dioxide (TiO2) which, when exposed to natural sunlight, triggers a chemical reaction. This chemical reaction catalyses* the decomposition of dirt on the concrete’s surface; which makes it self-cleaning. What researchers in Europe later discovered, was that this concrete could clear smog up to 2 and a half meters from the ground. A ground-breaking discovery, but- why is it that this self-cleaning concrete can clear up smog? While searching for answers, researchers found that when exposed to sunlight, titanium dioxide can break down certain pollutants that contribute to smog. One of the pollutants titanium dioxide can oxidise is Nitrogen Oxide (NOx). Nitrogen Oxide is the result of burning fossil fuels. NOx breaks down in the atmosphere and creates smog and ground level ozone. Researchers are focused on Photocatalytic concreret's effectivness on Nitrogen Oxide due to the fact that NOx is a big contributer to air pollution and smog. So far, they have found that Photocatalytic concrete decreases nitrogen oxide levels by 25-45% and they are looking into how they can make it even more effective. To summarize, photocatalytic concrete uses natural sunlight, which reacts with titanium dioxide, to accelerate the natural oxidation process to decompose pollutants- thus clearing up the smog.
Catalyses: acceleration (a reaction) by acting as a catalyst.
Eg: The chemical reaction catalyses/ accelerates the decomposition of dirt in the concretes surface.
Photocatalytic concrete uses titanium dioxide (TiO2) which, when exposed to natural sunlight, triggers a chemical reaction. This chemical reaction catalyses* the decomposition of dirt on the concrete’s surface; which makes it self-cleaning. What researchers in Europe later discovered, was that this concrete could clear smog up to 2 and a half meters from the ground. A ground-breaking discovery, but- why is it that this self-cleaning concrete can clear up smog? While searching for answers, researchers found that when exposed to sunlight, titanium dioxide can break down certain pollutants that contribute to smog. One of the pollutants titanium dioxide can oxidise is Nitrogen Oxide (NOx). Nitrogen Oxide is the result of burning fossil fuels. NOx breaks down in the atmosphere and creates smog and ground level ozone. Researchers are focused on Photocatalytic concreret's effectivness on Nitrogen Oxide due to the fact that NOx is a big contributer to air pollution and smog. So far, they have found that Photocatalytic concrete decreases nitrogen oxide levels by 25-45% and they are looking into how they can make it even more effective. To summarize, photocatalytic concrete uses natural sunlight, which reacts with titanium dioxide, to accelerate the natural oxidation process to decompose pollutants- thus clearing up the smog.
Catalyses: acceleration (a reaction) by acting as a catalyst.
Eg: The chemical reaction catalyses/ accelerates the decomposition of dirt in the concretes surface.
Why is smog-eating concrete so amazing?
As you now know, Smog-eating concrete was developed in 2007, by the Italian cement company Italcementi, as a self-cleaning cement that, when mixed to create concrete, would make a self-clening concrete. It was only later that Italcementi noticed its pollution-killing quality. This is how they found out: They had topped off a road in Bergamo, Italy with TX Active (The project name for Photocatalytic concrete). The residents soon reported better-smelling air. Italcementi then began to market the cement as an environmentally friendly product.
Photocatalytic concrete is a logical idea because as our population increases, more roads are needed to get people from one place to another. Unfortunately, by adding more cars on the road, there is a higher concentration of air pollution. The only way to reduce that pollution is to incourage people to take eco-friendly forms of transportation, such as bikes or car pooling. But with 9 billion people on Earth, its not very likely that many people will actually take those forms of transportation. Naturally, this makes the photocatalytic cement a perfect paving material as it successfully reduces the amount of toxins expelled by vehicles and inhaled by pedestrians. The only down side of Photocatalytic concrete is that it costs 10X more than normal concrete. This is one of the leading reasons why Photocatalytic concrete isn't being used everywhere- governments don't want to pay the extra money. As humans, we need to step up and save our planet. If governments are going to be greedy and refuse to pay for this concrete, we must convince them that this smog-eating concrete is the perfect way to reduce smog and air pollution. We are living on this planet- therefore it is our job to protect it.
Photocatalytic concrete is a logical idea because as our population increases, more roads are needed to get people from one place to another. Unfortunately, by adding more cars on the road, there is a higher concentration of air pollution. The only way to reduce that pollution is to incourage people to take eco-friendly forms of transportation, such as bikes or car pooling. But with 9 billion people on Earth, its not very likely that many people will actually take those forms of transportation. Naturally, this makes the photocatalytic cement a perfect paving material as it successfully reduces the amount of toxins expelled by vehicles and inhaled by pedestrians. The only down side of Photocatalytic concrete is that it costs 10X more than normal concrete. This is one of the leading reasons why Photocatalytic concrete isn't being used everywhere- governments don't want to pay the extra money. As humans, we need to step up and save our planet. If governments are going to be greedy and refuse to pay for this concrete, we must convince them that this smog-eating concrete is the perfect way to reduce smog and air pollution. We are living on this planet- therefore it is our job to protect it.