The search for sustainable alternatives in civil construction has taken first place in one of the categories of the Capes/Natura Campus Award for Excellence in Research. The article [1] authored by researcher Fernando do Couto Rosa Almeida proposes the use of sugarcane bagasse ash sand as a substitute for natural sand used in concrete, mortar, and other cement-based materials in construction.
The research, developed at the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), alongside the Group of Studies in Sustainability and Eco-efficiency in Civil and Urban Construction (GESEC) under the guidance of Prof. Almir Sales, worked with waste generated from the bagasse of a sugar mill located in the city of Jaú, in the interior of São Paulo, to confirm this new application possibility. "There are studies that propose the use of sugarcane bagasse ash as a substitute for cement, but this requires thermal treatment and other processes that end up increasing the cost of the product. We wanted to propose this alternative to sand because, besides being sustainable, it is also cheaper, aiming to facilitate its application in the market," explains Fernando.
The study won in the "Sustainability: new materials and technologies" category of the Capes/Natura Campus Award, which had its first edition completed in 2016. The other category of the award, titled "Sociobiodiversity and Biological Conservation," was won by researcher Diogo Soares Menezes Samia. The winners each received R$ 25,000.
Currently pursuing a doctorate at Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland, Fernando Almeida explained in an interview with Natura Campus the objectives of his research. “Brazil is the world's largest producer of sugarcane and its derivatives, especially the state of São Paulo, which concentrates more than half of this production. Our work was conducted with the waste generated during the burning of sugarcane bagasse for energy production. Today, the ash generated in this process has no application and is thrown into the fields. With this research, we propose a more sustainable and responsible alternative for the application of this ash sand,” highlights Fernando.
Despite being a natural resource, the collection of sand typically used in construction can also cause environmental damage, such as the silting of rivers caused by human action. “The use of ash sand would also help reduce this type of problem,” states the researcher.
He emphasizes that the evolution of the study was only possible thanks to the network effort that involved companies, laboratories, and researchers. Besides Fernando, the article is co-authored by Almir Sales, Juliana P. Moretti, and Paulo C.D. Mendes. Cosan, a company that manages sugarcane mills, assisted the researchers by providing the waste used in the research. “The components of the waste vary according to the mill; it depends a lot on how it is managed. Nearly 10 years of research from the Research Group has indicated the best practice for using this ash sand,” emphasizes Fernando. In parallel, the Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Electrochemistry and Ceramics (Liec) at UFSCar and the Group of Electrochemical Materials and Electroanalytical Methods at USP in São Carlos contributed to more in-depth studies on the properties of the new materials. The researchers also received financial support from CAPES and CNPq.
After this stage of the research, further studies are being conducted by members of GESEC to advance the analysis of this material's behavior in interaction with steel and other materials commonly used in civil construction. “It is necessary to analyze more deeply, generate standards, techniques, and specifications for this material so that it can be applied in the market,” explains Fernando.
The researcher concludes by highlighting the importance of partnerships for the advancement of research and innovation in the country: “The partnership between the academic sector, the private sector, and the public sector all contribute to the realization of quality research. I was very happy to be among the winners of this award, through research that well represents this interaction.”
Learn more:
[1] Almeida, F. C., Sales, A., Moretti, J. P., & Mendes, P. C. (2015). Sugarcane bagasse ash sand (SBAS): Brazilian agroindustrial by-product for use in mortar. Construction and Building Materials, 82, 31-38.
