Funding code: INNEST/2022/261

Description: This project is a continuation of a previous project also developed by UPV, UCV and RVM and financed by AVI in the years 20210-2021 for the development of sustainable concrete maritime infrastructures to promote the growth of flora and fauna (LIVING PORTS). In this project, a concrete with a low carbon footprint was developed thanks to the use of recycled glass in its composition, on which a series of surface finishes and macro-designs were applied to attract the settlement and growth of marine species on the infrastructures so that they go from being an inhospitable element to being fully integrated into the environment.

Based on the results obtained in LIVING PORTS, the LIVINGREEFS project is proposed as a continuation of the previous one, introducing novelties in the composition of th eco-concrete and in its possible applications.

Thus, the main objective of this project is the development and validation of an eco-concrete, or sustainable concrete, based on the use of agricultural or industrial byproducts in its composition to reduce its carbon footprint, as well as to evaluate its enrichment with nutrients and functional bacteria to improve the colonization process. This eco-concrete will also meet the necessary requirements for its application in maritime infrastructures.

 Developed between 06/05/2022 and 30/09/2024 

Amount (UCV): 118.849,90 €

Total amount: 496.458,86 € 

Other entities/participants: Rover Maritime (coordinator), Ingeniera Avanzada de Obras Marítimas SLP, Universitat Jaume I, Universitat Politécnica de València.

Results obtained

As a summary of the results regarding the use of waste materials in Eco-concretes for sustainable construction strategies, it is concluded that:

• Volcanic ash and rice husk ash exhibit good reactivity and contribute to higher strength at later ages, even with high levels of substitution (up to 55% and 30%, respectively).
• Rice straw fiber can be used as a waste sink in substitutions up to 10%, but it does not improve the performance of the eco-concrete.
• The application of bacteria on the surface does not affect the concrete's performance nor provides any evident improvement in marine life proliferation.

As a general result of the project, it is confirmed that using Eco-concretes with high percentages of cement replacement by volcanic ash can reduce the carbon footprint associated with concrete by up to 43% compared to a control mix, regardless of the location of concrete manufacturing and ash grinding. This represents a 31% reduction in the emissions of reinforced concrete used in a real infrastructure. Through the manufacture, installation, and monitoring of pilot structures in a real marine environment (TRL7), it has been validated that these results can be applied in a novel design for a real sustainable marine protection infrastructure.