Overview
- The team heated spent coffee grounds to about 350°C in low-oxygen conditions to create a porous, charcoal-like material for mixing into concrete.
- Early lab results showed roughly 30% higher compressive strength compared with conventional mixes using only natural aggregates.
- The additive substitutes for a portion of natural sand, a change researchers say could ease ecological damage linked to intensive sand mining.
- Global coffee waste totals around ten billion kilograms a year, much of which decomposes in landfills and releases methane and carbon dioxide.
- Durability trials covering freeze–thaw and weathering are underway, and researchers plan to test other waste streams, with any real-world use contingent on validation, supply-chain feasibility and regulatory approval.