Self-Healing Cement
Established in 1963, the R&D 100 Awards is the only S&T (science and technology) awards competition that recognizes new commercial products, technologies and materials for their technological significance that are available for sale or license. The R&D 100 Awards have long been a benchmark of excellence for industry sectors as diverse as telecommunications, high-energy physics, software, manufacturing, and biotechnology. This 2021 R&D 100 winner is listed below, along with its respective category.
Category: Mechanical/Materials
Developers: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
United States
Product Description:Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s transformative Self-Healing Cement fills cracks and restores cement to its original mechanical integrity in intense, high-temperature environments. The combination of synthetic polymer and cement outperforms conventional concrete. The pollution-preventing technology extends the life of cement by at least 30 years. The cement also reduces drilling interruptions and costly repairs. Self-healing cement could resolve major concerns about the sealing of wellbores for oil, gas and geothermal heat production. Leaks in wellbores cause contamination and limit the ability to provide clean energy alternatives. These leaks contaminate aquifers and surface waters. PNNL’s self-healing cement can deliver significant energy with minimal carbon release to the atmosphere. Currently, tens of thousands of tons of conventional cement ends up in landfills. With the additional 30 years of usage of the composite, less cement would go to landfills. The synthetic polymer brings flexibility to cement, making it useful for infrastructure that protects people worldwide, ranging from dams to nuclear waste facilities. The polymer’s flexibility adds 50 to 70% more elasticity to the cement, improving durability against natural disasters like earthquakes.
Developers: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
United States
Product Description:Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s transformative Self-Healing Cement fills cracks and restores cement to its original mechanical integrity in intense, high-temperature environments. The combination of synthetic polymer and cement outperforms conventional concrete. The pollution-preventing technology extends the life of cement by at least 30 years. The cement also reduces drilling interruptions and costly repairs. Self-healing cement could resolve major concerns about the sealing of wellbores for oil, gas and geothermal heat production. Leaks in wellbores cause contamination and limit the ability to provide clean energy alternatives. These leaks contaminate aquifers and surface waters. PNNL’s self-healing cement can deliver significant energy with minimal carbon release to the atmosphere. Currently, tens of thousands of tons of conventional cement ends up in landfills. With the additional 30 years of usage of the composite, less cement would go to landfills. The synthetic polymer brings flexibility to cement, making it useful for infrastructure that protects people worldwide, ranging from dams to nuclear waste facilities. The polymer’s flexibility adds 50 to 70% more elasticity to the cement, improving durability against natural disasters like earthquakes.
Pictured left is PNNL’s self-healing cement, which includes a polymer that migrates to cracks, filling them and restoring structural integrity. On the right is conventional wellbore cement that doesn’t contain polymer and breaks easily.