Summary Reader's Response Draft 4 - "The Self-Healing Concrete..."

In the article "The Self-Healing Concrete…" Spinks (2015), Spinks shares a new green technology by Hendrik Jonkers, a microbiologist at Delft University. His innovation increases the lifespan of concrete by embedding self-activating limestone-producing bacteria into building material.

Jonkers hopes to decrease the production of new concrete and lower maintenance as well as repair costs of essential concrete infrastructures. His innovation comes in three forms: a spray, a repair mortar, and the self-healing concrete itself. He predicts that this new green technology will be instrumental in highway infrastructure. Although this new green technology sounds promising, Spinks mentions that it cannot cure cracks wider than 0.8mm. John Alker, director of policy at the UK Green Building Council, believes that this technology's breakthrough will be a challenge, conditional on clients' and developers' willingness to test it out. Jonkers' innovation has been utilised for a concrete irrigation system project in Ecuador and is being piloted in developing countries worldwide. This green technology will be profitable for the building authorities in a concrete jungle such as Singapore since it comes in three convenient forms.

The sprat form of self-healing concrete is ideal for conserved buildings, which are an important part of Singapore's heritage. Our SG Heritage (Our Places, n.d.) reported that 72 buildings in Singapore have been gazetted as National Monuments, and more than 7,000 buildings have been conserved, many of which are located in conserved historic districts such as Kampong Glam, Little India and Chinatown. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) hopes to ensure that these buildings follow the 3R's – principles of maximum Retention, sensitive Restoration and careful Repair. Understandably, for structures  protected under the Preservation Monuments Act, it is essential that the repair processes result in minimum to zero alteration to the building's original semblance. The traditional way of plastering over cracks may alter the building's surface's original texture or colour. It will take meticulous efforts and a considerable amount of manpower to minimise variation from the building's authentic finishing. The spray form of self-healing concrete eases the repair process. It will need very minimal manpower, and the application is easy – spray the solution directly onto the cracks, and the concrete will heal itself over time.

The repair mortar form of self-healing concrete is exceptionally beneficial for repairing highways and viaducts, which are heavily utilised in Singapore daily. According to a research article done by Centre for Liveable Cities, there are more than 100 flyovers and viaducts in Singapore (Hoh, 2016). As I see it, repairing flyovers and viaducts is not an easy task. Regular maintenance and upgrading of bridges are awarded to contractors by LTA. Some of the repairs involve concrete spalling and damaged elements on road structures (Swee Builders Pte Ltd, n.d.). I estimate it to be a costly, labour-intensive, and time-dependent process. The repair mortar form of self-healing concrete is suitable and highly economical for this case, as it can avert future repair works to a certain degree.

The self-healing concrete in cement form effectively impedes concrete repairs and reduces the maintenance frequency for concrete skyscrapers. Singapore has 8,200 buildings and about 80 skyscrapers in its Central Business District area (Wikipedia, 2021), all of which are made of concrete. In my humble opinion, reparation costs can be significantly reduced if essential structures are built using the self-healing concrete in cement form instead of traditional cement.

The spray form, repair mortar form, and cement form of self-healing concrete are advantageous in different ways for various structures. Being a highly influential country that boasts of prodigious advancements, Singapore should be one of the first ASEAN countries to promote a sustainable and environmentally-friendly innovation such as the self-healing concrete for others to follow.  (609 words)

 

References:

Hoh, D (2016). Turning Dead Spaces into Dynamic Places for Entrepreneurship. Centre for Liveable Cities Singapore. https://www.clc.gov.sg/docs/default-source/reports/turning-dead-spaces.pdf

Our SG Heritage. (n.d.). Our Places. Heritage Plan. Retrieved February 16, 2021, from https://www.oursgheritage.gov.sg/what-is-the-heritage-plan-for-singapore/our-places/

Spinks, R (2015, June 20). The Self-Healing Concrete That Can Fix Its Own Cracks. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/jun/29/the-self-healing-concrete-that-can-fix-its-own-cracks

TR223 Regular Maintenance and Upgrading of Bridge (n.d.). Swee Builders Pte Ltd. Retrieved February 16, 2021, from http://sweebuilders.com.sg/portfolio/tr223-regular-maintenance.

Wikipedia contributors. (2021, February 13). List of tallest buildings in Singapore. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Singapore.