Concrete has enormous sustainable potential

Concrete is the second most widely used raw material in the world after water and has enormous potential in the circular economy, according to Betonhuis. For example, concrete can be 100% reused without loss of quality, provided a number of conditions are met. Concrete also has enormous sustainable potential in the GWW, both in terms of circularity, building for nature and CO₂-reduction.

The concrete industry is working hard to achieve the circular goals for 2030. Concrete is an extremely sustainable building material. "We build in the GWW for at least 100+ years. We don't demolish our future. But even if we build for a shorter period, for example because artworks or other objects need replacement or expansion earlier, the concrete structure is never lost. Only when relocation and reuse is no longer an option do we decompose the concrete structure back into raw materials. That view provides a lot of sustainability and circularity benefits." Speaking is Paul Ewalds, sector manager of concrete mortar & coordinator of policy and regulations at Betonhuis. He advocates high-quality reuse and, above all, circular design. "Only then do we really complete the circle."

As stated in the Concrete Agreement, only part of concrete's performance on the themes of circularity and sustainability comes from the material itself. "The vast majority of the circularity goals to be achieved lie in the design phase," Ewalds emphasizes. "There has to be a focus on circular design and on nature. How can a structure be used if it loses its intended function? The Building Value Model advocates adaptive and remountable design, where the concrete structure can also be adapted and/or disassembled to other user needs and functions." A good example is the reuse of nineteen concrete girders from a redundant viaduct in Groningen. They get a second life in a new viaduct over the A1 near Apeldoorn. Or the Vlotwatering Bridge, where three specific bridge components provide habitats for bats. Here, concrete forms a stable and pleasant climate for the critters.

A concrete pavement is an interesting alternative to asphalt, according to Jeroen de Vrieze, consultant for Technical Marketing and Statistics in the GWW at Betonhuis. "One of the main advantages is the long service life. Standard calculations are forty years, but that can go up to at least sixty years or more. That's much more than other pavement types." A concrete road is perfectly recyclable, with the concrete granulate being reusable as aggregate for new concrete pavement. And the foundation is also recyclable. Another advantage is the robustness of a concrete surface. Due to climate change, road sections are increasingly flooded due to heavy rainfall or floods (think of the floods in South Limburg, the Ardennes and the Eifel in 2021). The rigidity of concrete remains constant during flooding and concrete does not suffer from subsidence or rutting."

Finally, concrete is resistant to very high or low temperatures. "At very high temperatures, emissions occur with asphalt, but concrete remains emission-free both upward and downward and is also chemically inert," De Vrieze points out. The robust properties of concrete further lead to much less maintenance. "That, of course, provides a huge benefit during the use phase. Think of reducing traffic congestion and nitrogen emissions during maintenance work. Also, fewer traffic jams occur and traffic does not have to detour: all of which reduces nitrogen emissions. A concrete pavement is also much flatter than asphalt and also maintains its flatness. As a result, rolling resistance remains low and vehicles can save up to 6% of fuel on concrete roads. For trucks, the gain is about 2%."

As a knowledge center, Betonhuis is constantly looking for new ways to contribute to a better world. For example, Betonhuis is working on even safer work, but also on nature-inclusive and climate-adaptive construction, circular designs, leaner constructions and remountable concrete elements. In short, as far as Betonhuis is concerned, a tree can be set up more often with everyone involved with concrete about how we can really make an impact. Because with concrete we make the difference.