Revolution in construction: Stuttgart researchers develop concrete from urine!

Revolution in construction: Stuttgart researchers develop concrete from urine!

What's in the world of building? An innovative approach from Baden-Württemberg takes the step into the future: At the University of Stuttgart , scientists are developing a building material that is obtained from a human urine-with great success. As part of the “Simbioze” project, the research group is working on an environmentally friendly bioobetone that is not only sustainable, but could also be a real alternative to conventional cement.

But how does it work? Urine is not simply disposed of here, but is used as a reaction medium to produce a fixed building material. According to chip , this method also requires less energy and also causes lower CO₂ emissions compared to conventional cement. The basis is the biomineralization, in which sand is mixed with a bacterial powder and then rinsed with calcium -enriched urine over a period of three days.

sustainability with high potential

This mixture has it all: microorganisms break down the urea in the urine, which releases calcium carbonate. This acts as a natural binder and solidifies the entire material. The advantage? A stable, mineral building material is created without energy -intensive burning processes - in contrast to the elaborate production of classic cement, in which high temperatures are required.

"This technology protects the resources and could fundamentally change the construction industry," explains project manager Professor Lucio Blandini from the Institute of Light Construction, Designing and Constructing (ILEK). The first rehearsals already show promising material properties: with technical urea a compressive strength of over 50 megapascal was achieved, while with a real human urine a strength of five megapascal was achieved. The goal is to increase them to 30 to 40 megapascal in order to be suitable for the construction of two to three-storey buildings.

innovations from nature

What's next with the biobetone? The building material not only has high pressure resistance, but can also replace traditional building material such as sandstone and cement -based concrete. This means that the production could potentially be made from waste materials, which significantly reduces ecological footprint. Current frost-congestion tests are already running to test the suitability of the material for the outdoor area-there is definitely something!

The feasibility study is supported by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research and Art, which underlines the relevance of the project. Building with urine could not only be a good move for the construction industry, but also the way we think about building materials. Perhaps the researchers from Stuttgart will soon bring us a sustainable construction technology that is not only environmentally friendly, but also intelligent and innovative.