Abstract: Concrete is renowned for its structural strength, yet cement production is responsible for nearly 8% of global CO₂ emissions. By incorporating small amounts of carbon black, however, concrete can be made electrically conductive, opening the door to functionalities far beyond structural support. Electron-conductive concrete (EC³) enables applications ranging from selfheating infrastructure and large-scale energy storage to the potential wireless charging of electric vehicles traveling on conductive roadways. This talk will introduce the fundamental principles underlying EC³ and highlight emerging applications of this multifunctional material. No background in electrochemistry is assumed. Instead, I will show how expanding the traditional concrete toolbox to include electrically conductive bulk materials fundamentally changes our understanding of what concrete can do. Rather than serving solely as a structural material, concrete can become an active component of future energy and transportation infrastructure—and part of the solution to a more sustainable built environment.
Bio: Franz-Josef Ulm (Ph.D., Habil., Dr. h.c., P.E., NAE) is the Class of 1922 Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Trained as a structural engineer at the Technical University of Munich and the École des Ponts ParisTech, he joined the MIT faculty in 1999. He is the founding director of the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub (established in 2009) and, since 2024, the founding director of the MIT EC³ Hub, which advances research and development on electrically conductive concrete and energy storage in concrete infrastructure.
Andrew Liguori
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