Firing bricks and making mortar and cement is costly, but organic chemists at Flinders University are working on more sustainable alternatives - focusing on building materials made from waste products.
In another move into the circular economy, researchers from the Chalker Lab have used low-cost feedstocks to make lightweight, durable polymer building blocks which can be bonded together with an adhesive-free chemical reaction.
Their latest study tested the strength of these materials and explored ways they can be reinforced in construction.
Matthew Flinders Professor of Chemistry, Justin Chalker, says the need to develop sustainable building materials is increasingly important, with cement, iron and steel production accounting for more than 15% of global CO2 emissions each year.
"In this study, we tested a new type of brick we can make from waste cooking oil, mixed with sulfur and dicyclopentadiene (DCPD). Both sulfur and DCPD are byproducts of petroleum refining.
"The bricks bond together without mortar upon application of a trace amount of amine catalyst.
"All the starting materials are plentiful and can be classified as industrial waste."
"This research is part of a larger effort to move towards a sustainable built environment," says project leader Professor Chalker.
The Chalker Lab's new polymer research team at Flinders University's College of Science and Engineering is collaborating with Clean Earth Technologies
