Rector Professor Hans Müller-Steinhagen shares his happiness with the ones awarded: “Congratulations! This is a great success for the three professors, for the Technische Universität Dresden, and also for Dresden as a hub for science and research. With this award, scientists of our university have succeeded in making trendsetting innovations comprehensible, and thus convinced a distinguished German Future Award jury for the second time since 2011, starting with an idea and fundamental research leading all the way to market introduction.”

“For the first time in the history of this award ceremony a team in the field of civil engineering has been honoured. This shows how important our research and endeavours are, that aim at bringing about the absolutely necessary paradigm shift in the field of civil engineering driving it towards more resource efficiency and sustainability”, explains Professor Manfred Curbach, Director of the Institute of Concrete Structures and chairman of the winning team.

The three researchers of Technische Universität Dresden developed a novel compound material that relies on the use of carbon instead of steel reinforcement. Carbon is four times lighter and its bearing capacity is six times larger than steel. The potential of the innovative compound material is huge. In comparison to reinforced concrete, carbon concrete is more resistant and at the same time more durable because no oxidisation is taking place. Construction compounds and buildings can be constructed thinner while valuable resources such as water and sand are conserved. In addition, the material allows for filigree forms and a broad range of applications. By implementing carbon concrete, more than 50 per cent of material can be saved. This correlates with a decrease of energy consumption and CO² emissions. In the development process, however, all details must be taken into consideration. Components made from carbon concrete enable a combination with additional functionalities such as insulation, heating, or supervising of buildings. Carbon concrete cannot only be implemented in the field of new constructions but is also suitable for the reinforcement of already existing buildings. The expected lifetime of buildings, bridges, and poles can be considerably increased by applying a thin layer of carbon concrete. As early as 2006, old buildings throughout Germany and the world have been reinforced with this procedure, e.g. a shopping centre in Prague or huge silos like the sugar silo in Uelzen. The building material carbon concrete therefore not only is an innovation for Dresden but is gaining in importance worldwide.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research saw the importance of the carbon concrete technology and funds the C³ – Carbon Concrete Composite association with up to 43 million Euros. The C³ is an interdisciplinary network consisting of more than 150 associates from the areas of economy, science, and organisations who jointly advance the market introduction of this innovative material.

Further information on the topic is provided in the Dresdner Transferbrief (Dresden Transfer Bulletin) issue “Construction Industry Innovation”. Professor Dr.-Ing. Manfred Curbach, one of the awarded scientists talks about the future of construction, necessary modifications, and new revolutionary solution approaches. The following video from the Transfer Office series Forschung live (Research live) provides insights on textile concrete as an efficient material.