Descripción del proyecto
Estabilización de suelos inspirada en la naturaleza
La estabilización de suelos representa un proceso importante en la construcción. Puede mitigar los riesgos de estabilidad provocados por terremotos, erosión del suelo, deterioro de infraestructuras y corrimientos de tierras. La estabilización de suelos se aplica a infraestructuras industriales, de transporte y comerciales. Además, es necesaria para los edificios debido al crecimiento de la urbanización, en particular en las regiones en desarrollo. Sin embargo, los aditivos minerales y los agentes estabilizadores que se emplean hoy en día en el mercado de la estabilización de suelos son peligrosos para el medio ambiente y aplicarlos resulta caro ya que requieren un equipo pesado. El proyecto CEBREWA, financiado con fondos europeos, se concentra en una estabilización de suelos biomediada e inspirada en la naturaleza llamada biocementación. Desarrollará y controlará todo el sistema a nivel industrial, el cual permitirá obtener aplicaciones de biocementación de suelos rápidas y reproducibles.
Objetivo
CEBREWA (Construction & Environmental Biocementation in REal World Applications) tackles the emerging ground stabilisation problems which are becoming increasingly pressing in construction and environmental engineering. Ground stabilization mitigates stability risks associated with geohazards, such as earthquakes, soil erosion, and landslides. Such problems are expected to be further intensified by extreme weather and aging infrastructure. Traditionally, ground stabilization is applied to roads, railroads, airfields, embankments, reservoirs, bank protection, canals, dams, and coastal engineering. Rapid urbanization, particularly in developing regions, is fuelling the ground stabilization market growth. This is primarily due to: (i) the scarcity of suitable land for development and (ii) the need to extend existing infrastructure (typically by building more floors, and therefore increasing the loads sustained by foundations) to support increasing populations in urban zones. The mineral additives & stabilizing agents segment currently accounts for the largest share in the ground stabilization market. Mineral & stabilizing agents include, amongst others, cement, lime, fly ash, and polyurethane resins. This market has not been disrupted for decades, with current solutions complex and expensive, mainly due to the heavy equipment required for their application, and often hazardous to the environment, as they rely on the extensive use of industrial fluids or microplastics. The ERC-funded project BIOGEOS (grant agreement 788587) focuses on bio-mediated, nature-inspired ground reinforcement (bio-cementation). The goal is to develop and master the complete, industrial-scale system which will allow fast and reproducible ground bio-cementation applications. The PoC is expected to result in IP consolidation, scaling-up of production through outsourcing and demonstration of value created for end-users.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
ERC-POC - Proof of Concept GrantInstitución de acogida
1015 Lausanne
Suiza