Abstract: Biochar is well known as a sustainable and, possibly, carbon-negative material. Widely popular as a soil remediation agent and pollutant adsorbent, the use of biochar’s physical properties to enhance concrete’s chemical and physical processes has a relatively short history.

In the last 9 years, much advances have been made in this field. This talk aims to provide audience an interesting and accessible account of the major developmental milestones in the short history of biochar concrete and biochar cementitious materials. The sustainability benefits of different types of biochar concrete will also be highlighted against a background of novel findings on how various carbon-sequestering properties of biochar, for example, the pore surface fractal dimensions, can determine the density of pores that participate in the carbon capture process.

Biography: Harn Wei Kua is Associate Professor of Sustainable Building Materials at the National University of Singapore. He earned his PhD from the Building Technology Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). His research specializes in upcycling of waste into high performance sustainable building materials; his current focus is on the use of biochar as a partial replacement for sand and/or cement in concrete, while improving the mechanical and hygroscopic properties of concrete. He also specializes in sustainability assessment of building materials – he creates and applies life cycle sustainability assessment and Circular Economy methods to evaluate building materials and strategies of recycling waste into building materials.

Harn Wei Kua is Associate Editor of Critical Review in Environmental Science and Technology (IF: 8.302) and Energy and Environment (IF: 1.775). He is also the University’s Thrust Lead for construction 3D printing and the lead for the Smart Materials Laboratory of the Department of Building. To date, he has won numerous academic awards and honors, including the MIT Carroll L. Wilson Award, and he has been invited to deliver more than 70 speeches in local and international conferences, seminars and summer schools.