Article Summary Draft 1

Article title: What Happened to Green Concrete?

Majcher (2015) stated that albeit the existence of green concrete and its benefits, the application is not common as it fails to garner support from the industry. The technology also did not advance over the years. Novacem, forefront of green cement in 2010, winded up in 2012 due to poor investment for its green concrete technology. While Calera another company, now focuses on commercialising their technology with fibre to make boards for toilet usage, as it is more lucrative than creating green concrete.

CarbonCure on the other hand, sells green cement that had been utilised by approximately 20 projects in the 2 years since it had started. The technology only helped decrease carbon footprint by 5% but more if the carbon used is captured by the plant itself. The production cannot be insitu, which is still under development. Solidia Technologies’ green cement is stronger and crack resistance, but is not advancing since 2008 even with supports from big companies like Lafarge. 

Nanoengineering can help reduce fracturing and cement usage as found by MIT’s Concrete Sustainability Hub. Meanwhile replacing portland cement with fly ash reduces water by half and is cured under chemical reaction, and assists in reducing landfill use.

While Majcher listed how the various companies develop their technologies and the benefits they brought, she failed to elaborate what are the factors that hindered the industry players from utilising the technologies.

Done by: Chun Siang, Jayce and Yuan Lin

Summary activity

Article title: What Happen to Green Concrete?

Majcher (2015) stated that albeit the existence of environmentally-friendly concrete, the application is not widely seen. 

Key points:

• Novacem, forefront of green cement in 2010, along with their head scientist Nikolaos Vlasopoulos, substituted Portland cement with magnesium oxide material. 
• Magnesium oxide captures carbon dioxide when mixed with water. 
• In 2012, the lack of capital due to poor investment rate resulted in liquidation and the sale of their intellectual property.
• Calera another green concrete company, used to mix carbon into portland cement. 
• It had demonstrated on pedestrian pathways, but the application was more useful to make fiber cement boards used in toilets. Increasing the use of the technology will take a while.
• Other companies such as CarbonCure, focuses on improving the material’s strength by adding carbon dioxide produce from factories. 
• Based on past projects, this method is very efficient as it saved 2700 tons of carbon dioxide which is equivalent to 125000 trees.
• Solidia Technologies, as part of a movement towards green cement, is trying to hide away carbon dioxide in concrete with the improvement of technology. Such concrete would be much stronger as well as environmentally friendly.
• Keeping carbon dioxide in concrete is one way for improving the environmental footprint.
• Further advancement in technology as well as the change in the process such as introduction of in situ carbon capturing are required to maximise carbon emission reduction. 
• Besides adding carbon for concrete making, fly ash is another alternative. CeraTech mentioned that its concrete last longer than portland cement. 
• Such methods can help to reduce ash by a significant amount through implementing the ash into the cement.

Reported Speech Problem Scenario

Zai and I were discussing our bad habits and she mentioned that hers is eating junk food while she is doing her work, especially milk chocolates. She developed this habit because she tends to munch on food to keep her mind occupied. She considered it as a bad habit as it not just a waste of money but also is an unhealthy lifestyle to adopt.

She finds it hard to kick the habit from its root (the act of purchasing the snacks) as it is something that she buys frequently not due to stress. It is has become an instinct for her to stock up, as she feels that it is like an essential (treating chocolate like water and food in her life).

Her family did advise her to kick it off as she herself noticed that she had gained weight in areas she does not wish to since she is also lazy to exercise. She says that she will find healthy alternatives to her snacks like dark chocolate instead and grapes and, cut fruits. She mentioned that she will try her best to put cut fruits in her bag as a reminder if she needs to shred the fats off, she should stop munching in an unhealthy way.



*Commented on Wei Wen's, Domenic's & Akram's post

Self-introduction

Dear Mr Blackstone,

my name is Yuan Lin and I am your student from Group 4 of CVE1281. This post acts as a formal introduction about myself to you and my fellow classmates. Prior to pursing the civil engineering joint-degree programme offered by Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) and University of Glasgow (UoG), I was on my gap year working as a retail associate specialising in audio gadgets and lifestyle products. That job has no association with my diploma in environmental management and water technology from Singapore Polytechnic, but it was a part-time job I took on since I started polytechnic that I switched to full-time after graduating. Additionally, I got to experience the best of both worlds of tertiary education, as I also graduated with an A-Level certification in the science stream before embarking on my diploma.

My interest in pursuing in the civil engineering field began while on a university talk, then organised by my junior college where I was introduced to the prospect of a civil engineer. At the same time, I have always been intrigued by environmental topics which led to me finalising my diploma choice. Even though now I am studying civil engineering, my diploma is still relevant as it is a scope in the field as well.

A strength (I believe) I possess is how people would find it easy to approach me for talks. Friends around me and even strangers (especially aunties) tend to approach me first to strike up a chat with me. It has also helped me in my job as customers are less reluctant to accept my offer to assist them on first approach. Friends have also commented that their first impression is that I am friendly to approach. However, a weakness I noticed is that I still lack the know-how on public speeches. I tend to shy away at the opportunity of optional presentations, as I lack a coherent train of thoughts to present my idea despite preparation. I admit it that I overthink on being “in the spotlight” with the plausibility of the audience making fun of my articulation and stutter, which makes the whole experience awkward and uncomfortable for me.

So, through this module I wish that I can pick up the arts of effective communication to aid in conveying my ideas effortlessly. Of course, this soft skill will very much be applicable to the working field in the future, where I might need to present my idea or project to my superiors and fellow colleagues. I look forward to the journey we will be embarking on for this trimester.

Best Regards,

Yeo Yuan Lin



*Edited on 6th April 2019
*Commented on Jayce's, Syed's & Nurul's post

Hello There!

Well, it is my very first time owning a blog and the purpose for creating one is for my Effective Communication module. I will be using this platform to upload my assignments, with the techniques I have acquired in class. So feel free to leave comments so I can continuously improve in my communication skills :D