Functional cementitious materials for energy harvesting

Obiettivo

FUN-CRETE aims to translate recent advances in auxetic cementitious cellular composites into a first application-oriented demonstration of infrastructure-integrated energy harvesting. The underlying ERC-funded research has established a new class of cementitious materials with exceptional deformability, damage resistance and recoverable “second-elasticity” behaviour enabled by architected auxetic geometries. This project builds directly on those results by exploring whether such controlled, recoverable deformation can be exploited as a reliable source of mechanical strain for piezoelectric energy conversion.

The project focuses on cementitious auxetic cellular composites coupled with flexible piezoelectric polymers, enabling strain-driven electrical energy generation directly within load-bearing structural elements. Rather than relying on discrete kinetic devices or resonant systems, the concept targets intrinsic, geometry-driven energy harvesting under low-frequency, high-intensity loading typical of urban infrastructure such as traffic intersections, transit stations and heavily used pavements.

FUN-CRETE will validate the technical feasibility of this approach at component level, clarify the most promising application domains, and define a coherent exploitation strategy. Activities will include targeted market analysis, stakeholder engagement, IP positioning and business model development, supported by explicit go/no-go decision points. The project will culminate in validation at TRL 4 and the preparation of an EIC Transition–ready exploitation package. If successful, the project will open a new pathway toward multifunctional cementitious materials that combine structural performance with embedded energy functionality, enabling scalable, low-maintenance powering of distributed infrastructure electronics.