Low-carbon construction materials encompass a broad class of building products engineered to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, resource consumption, and environmental impact across their life cycle. Approaches include alternative binders such as geopolymers and low-clinker cements, incorporation of recycled aggregates and industrial by-products, and development of bio-based and engineered living materials that can self-heal or sequester carbon. These materials are applied in concrete, masonry, pavements, insulation, and structural components, often integrating circular economy principles and digital design or AI tools for performance optimization.
Engineering
A team of UBC Okanagan students has shown that recycling rubble from destroyed buildings can help Ukraine rebuild its roads when the war eventually ends.
Oct 22, 2025
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Engineering
Despite decades of warnings and increasing efforts to fight climate change, global carbon emissions are still rising. While cutting emissions from the source is a common way we address this problem, another crucial strategy ...
Engineering
Installing green infrastructure in residential areas can prevent stormwater from flooding sewer systems and significantly curb heavy metal pollution, suggests a new study.
Oct 15, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
Lots of single-use water bottles made from poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) end up in landfills, but there's a growing interest in upcycling them instead. Researchers in Energy & Fuels report on new heat-based fabrication ...
Oct 9, 2025
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Electronics & Semiconductors
They are the "heart" of every electronic device, from laptops to electric toothbrushes: printed circuit boards, also known as PCBs. These rigid boards are covered with copper traces and soldered electronic components and ...
Oct 7, 2025
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Engineering
Cement is one of the most-used materials in the world, and one of the highest emitters of global CO2 emissions. As demand for cement continues to grow, researchers are looking for alternatives to help reduce its environmental ...
Oct 7, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
Australia's rapid uptake of solar panels is creating a looming waste problem with most solar photovoltaic (PV) panels being directed to landfill at the end of their life.
Oct 7, 2025
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104
Energy & Green Tech
Wood is the primary source of raw material for paper production—whether as fresh fiber or recycled material. The silphium plant, a perennial energy crop, is now also being used as an alternative fiber source. Fraunhofer UMSICHT ...
Oct 6, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
Concrete already builds our world, and now it's one step closer to powering it, too. Made by combining cement, water, ultra-fine carbon black (with nanoscale particles), and electrolytes, electron-conducting carbon concrete ...
Oct 2, 2025
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249
Energy & Green Tech
UBC researchers have launched the world's first mushroom-powered waterless toilet, the MycoToilet, at the UBC Botanical Garden. The prototype turns human waste into nutrient-rich compost using mycelia—the root networks of ...
Sep 26, 2025
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