This 3D-Printed Bridge Absorbs 142% More Carbon Than Regular Concrete. It's Inspired By Human Bones

This 3D-Printed Bridge Absorbs 142% More Carbon Than Regular Concrete. It's Inspired By Human Bones

This 3D-Printed Bridge Absorbs 142% More Carbon Than Regular Concrete. It's Inspired By Human Bones With concrete accounting for about 8% of global carbon emissions, architecture and construction industries have been hard at work trying to find a material similarly affordable, versatile, strong, and available to build new structures. A research team at the University of Pennsylvania may have cracked the case. While they haven’t entirely eliminated concrete from their work, they’ve designed a bridge called Diamanti that is modularly 3D printed using a concrete mixture containing “diatomaceous earth,” a naturally porous material made from fossilized algae.  A rendering of the Diamanti bridge in Paris. Photo courtesy of Fortes Vision/Massive Form Most conventional concrete does absorb some carbon dioxide (about 30% of its emissions over its entire life cycle, according to reporting from CNN), but Diamanti’s concrete mixture absorbs 142% more than traditional concrete mixes. By switching ou…