Is cement the battery of the future?

Cement giant Holcim and ENGIE are working on technology that offers energy storage in cement

What if we could store waste energy not in batteries but in cement?

Swiss building materials giant Holcim has teamed up with ENGIE’s corporate research and development centre CRIGEN and French engineering university INSA Lyon to develop an energy storage technology that would serve as an alternative to conventional batteries.

The solution stores and converts surplus heat into power when needed.

It is based on the properties of a specific cementitious material that can absorb 300kW of energy per cubic metre and release it later through hydration.

It is designed to store the surplus energy that runs through a heating network and release it through a hydration trigger, Holcim said.

Edelio Bermejo, Head of Global Innovation, said: “The world needs innovative solutions to accelerate our shift towards renewable energy generation, distribution and storage – all areas in which Holcim can play a big part.

“With this collaboration we are moving energy storage forward, opening up a new range of solutions based on materials that are local and recyclable.”

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